
Account funding transactions are a crucial part of managing your finances. They allow you to deposit or transfer funds into your account, making it easier to pay bills, make purchases, or save money.
These transactions can be initiated through various means, such as bank transfers, wire transfers, or even mobile payments. You can also set up automatic transfers to have funds deposited into your account regularly.
One of the key benefits of account funding transactions is that they can help you avoid overdraft fees. By keeping a steady balance in your account, you can avoid the hassle and expense of overdraft charges.
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Definitions and Concepts
An account funding transaction (AFT) is a financial transaction that withdraws funds from a cardholder's account to fund another account, card, or non-card. This type of transaction is often account to account (A2A).
AFTs can be used in conjunction with an instant push or original credit transactions (OCTs).
A purchase transaction is a financial transaction that debits a cardholder's account.
Account Funding Transaction Flow

The Account Funding Transaction (AFT) process involves several steps, but it's surprisingly straightforward. It starts with the customer initiating a transaction on your platform or website.
The customer initiates a transaction on your platform or website. This can be done through a digital wallet, such as Fin Buddy, which sends a request to the customer's bank.
The bank receives the request and validates the customer's account details. This is where the "PULL" magnetism in action comes into play, as mentioned in Example 4.
Once the account details are confirmed and fund availability is checked, the customer receives an OTP from their bank for authentication.
The bank then verifies the OTP and checks if the customer has sufficient funds for the transaction. If everything is in order, the transaction is approved and the funds are added to the customer's digital wallet.
Here are the key steps involved in the AFT process:
- Customer initiates transaction on your platform/website.
- Customer's bank receives request and validates account details.
- Customer receives OTP from bank for authentication.
- Bank verifies OTP and checks fund availability.
- Transaction is approved and funds are added to customer's digital wallet.
The AFT process offers several benefits, including flexible funding sources, account verification and duplicate checks, OFAC screening, tokenization, and 3D Secure. These benefits help reduce risk and improve authorization rates, making the transaction process more secure and efficient.
Related reading: Why Do Credit Card Payments Take so Long to Process
Payment Gateways and Methods

To perform an AFT, you need to send a request with the is_aft field set to true. This will populate the recipientDetails to Nuvei.
Sender details will be populated with firstName, lastName, and country found in the payment method when using Nuvei REST. For Visa Direct and Mastercard Moneysend requests through GeneralCredit, first and last name are required fields.
Checkout V2
To perform an AFT with Checkout V2, you send your request with the processing.aft field set to true, along with a recipient and a sender object containing information about the transaction's sender and receiver.
The sender object requires the following parameters: type, first_name, middle_name, last_name, company_name, reference, reference_type, source_of_funds, date_of_birth, country_of_birth, nationality, address, identification, and more.
The destination object requires the following parameters: account_holder, email, date_of_birth, country_of_birth, phone, identification, and more.
The recipient object requires the following parameters: dob, zip, account_number, first_name, last_name, address, and more.
Here's a breakdown of the required fields for the sender, destination, and recipient objects:
Paysafe

Paysafe requires customers to register with the Card schemes in advance to perform an AFT.
To initiate this process, customers must contact Paysafe Support for more information and guidance.
Not all acquirers and processors support all available Merchant Category Codes (MCCs), so it's essential to check this before proceeding.
The MCC is passed through the funding_transaction field, which helps Paysafe identify the Purchase or Authorization request as a funding transaction.
Please reference Paysafe's API documentation for additional requirements related to this field.
Adyen
Adyen is a payment gateway that requires specific fields to perform an AFT on the legacy payment endpoint. You'll need to include the gateway-specific fields fund_source and fund_destination in your request.
To structure these fields correctly, pay close attention to the camel casing of fundingSource and the walletIdentifier field names. This is crucial for a successful request.
Pull Payment Features
Pull Payment Features are a game-changer for businesses and consumers alike. They offer a range of benefits, including flexible funding sources.

Consumers can fund their accounts using a payment card or their bank account. This is made possible by the Unified API, which allows for various payment instruments.
Account verification and duplicate checks are also key features of pull payments. By incorporating payment card verification methods, businesses can reduce risk and improve authorization rates.
OFAC screening is another important aspect of pull payments. This helps identify whether any parties involved in a transaction are on watch lists maintained by the Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Tokenization is also supported by pull payments. This includes network tokens, device tokens, and processor tokens. Some businesses may also use a PCI-compliant Token Vault.
In countries where it's mandated, 3D Secure is a convenient way to integrate cardholder authentication. This makes instant account funding or disbursement risk-free. TabaPay is compliant with EMV 3DS v2.1.0 and compatible with both web and mobile.
Here are some key features of pull payments:
- Flexible funding sources: payment card or bank account
- Account verification and duplicate checks
- OFAC screening
- Tokenization: network tokens, device tokens, and processor tokens
- 3D Secure in countries where mandated
By using pull payments, businesses can authorize remaining amounts and reduce non-sufficient funds.
Google Pay

Google Pay is a digital wallet service developed by Google that allows users to make payments online and in-store using their mobile devices. It's available in over 40 countries worldwide.
Google Pay supports a wide range of payment methods, including credit and debit cards, as well as bank accounts. Users can also store their loyalty cards and offers in the app.
To use Google Pay, users must have a compatible Android device and a Google account. The service is integrated with Google's Android operating system.
Google Pay uses tokenization to secure transactions, replacing sensitive card information with a unique token. This adds an extra layer of security to online and in-store payments.
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Transaction Types and Benefits
Account funding transactions can be used for a variety of purposes, including money transfers between accounts, topping up stored value accounts, and funding digital wallets.
There are three main types of account funding transactions: Account Funding, Quasi-Cash, and Purchase Transactions. Each has its own unique use cases.

Account Funding transactions can be used for money transfers, topping up stored value accounts, prepaid card top-ups, and funding for funds disbursements. This can include pulling from a business debit to fund payroll "push" payments.
Here are some examples of Quasi-Cash transactions:
Purchase Transactions are used for paying merchants for goods or services, which can include traditional goods and services, bill payments, debt repayment, donations, and gift card purchases.
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Subscription
Subscription services can be funded instantly, allowing customers to ensure uninterrupted service.
This feature is particularly useful for customers who rely on subscription-based services for regular deliveries or access to digital content.
Subscription funding can be completed in a matter of seconds, giving customers peace of mind that their services will continue uninterrupted.
Many businesses offer subscription funding options to their customers, making it easy for them to manage their accounts and avoid service interruptions.
Benefits of Instant Payments
Instant payments offer a range of benefits that can streamline your transactions and reduce the risk of non-sufficient funds.

With instant payments, you can authorize remaining amounts and reduce non-sufficient funds, making it easier to manage your finances.
Instant payments also support flexible funding sources, allowing consumers to fund their accounts using payment cards or their bank accounts.
By incorporating payment card verification methods, you can reduce risk and improve authorization rates.
Instant payments can also identify duplicate checks when the same funding source is used across multiple transactions, helping to prevent fraudulent activity.
In countries where it is mandated, instant payments can integrate 3D-Secure (3DS) and complete cardholder authentication, making transactions risk-free.
Here are some benefits of instant payments:
- Flexible funding sources: payment card or bank account
- Account verification & duplicate checks
- OFAC screening: watch list identification
- Tokenization: network tokens, device tokens, and processor tokens
- 3D Secure: cardholder authentication
Dispute and Chargeback Risks
AFTs, or cardholder-initiated transactions, are not subject to disputes or chargebacks because they don't involve merchant intervention.
OCTs, on the other hand, can indeed spark disputes or chargebacks, especially when they involve P2M transactions.
Only Visa has a separate dispute category for OCT transactions, using reason code 13.8, which is called "Original Credit Transaction Not Accepted".
This means that if a merchant refunds a customer, it's considered a "push" transaction, or OCT, and can potentially lead to disputes or chargebacks.
Backspace Tech offers a plug-and-play model to handle chargeback requests, simplifying the process for merchants and reducing the risk of disputes.
Original Credit Transactions

Original Credit Transactions are a type of transaction that directly credits funds to a designated card or account, unlike AFTs which pull funds from a cardholder's account.
This type of transaction is commonly used for direct deposits, such as payroll and government benefits, as well as business disbursements like refunds and cashback rewards.
In fact, OCTs are often used for refunds, like when a merchant refunds your payment back to your original payment method, aka your card.
To make this process accurate, merchants use the "Card on File (CoF)" process, which allows them to refund your account correctly.
If this caught your attention, see: Is a Credit Account a Type of Financial Accounts
Recommendations and Best Practices
If you want to simplify the process of handling sensitive information and payment cards, you can use TabaPay's internal Token vault to securely retrieve a TabaPay Token (Account ID) for your payment cards using their Create Account API.
To reduce the risk of fraud and chargebacks, you should utilize TabaPay Shield tools. These tools can verify if the card issuer recognizes the address and name provided by the cardholder.
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Enabling 3DS during certain transactions, such as account funding with payment cards, is highly recommended. TabaPay provides 3DS support for both web and mobile environments.
Here are some key recommendations and best practices to keep in mind:
- Use TabaPay's internal Token vault to securely retrieve a TabaPay Token (Account ID) for your payment cards.
- Utilize TabaPay Shield tools to verify card issuer recognition of address and name.
- Enable 3DS during account funding transactions to reduce the risk of fraud and chargebacks.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between AFT and OCT transaction?
AFT and OCT transactions differ in direction: AFT withdraws funds from a sender's account, while OCT deposits funds into a recipient's account. Understanding the distinction between these two types of transactions is crucial for managing account activity and processing payments efficiently.
Sources
- https://docs.nuvei.com/documentation/features/financial-operations/aft/
- https://docs.fiserv.dev/public/docs/visa-account-transactions-aft
- https://developer.spreedly.com/docs/account-funding-transactions-aft
- https://developers.tabapay.com/docs/overview-of-instant-account-funding
- https://backspace-tech.medium.com/aft-and-oct-cracking-two-peas-in-a-pod-e07e8dfae366
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