This article will show a list of commonly-used Merchant Processing terms.
Card Issuer - Refers to the financial institution that issues credit cards. This is not MasterCard or Visa, but the bank or credit union where the card account is held.
Card Holder - A person who has a credit or debit card. Essentially, this is the person whose name is on the card account, or the card itself.
Terminal - Also known as a payment terminal, POS (point of sale), EFTPOS, or credit card terminal, this is the device which interfaces with payment cards in order to process the electronic funds transfer transactions.
Payment Processor (PSP) - Typically a third party, a PSP is assigned by a merchant to handle the processing of payments through various means, such as cards and checks, online or at in-person terminals.
CID - Credit Card Identification Number. This is a 3-digit code in the signature panel on the back of Visa, MasterCard, and Discover cards. The CID for American Express is 4 digits on the front of the card.
CVV/CVV2 - Card Verification Value 2. The CVV is a code embedded into cards which is passed when a card is scanned at a POS or ATM. The CVV2 is akin to the CID (see above) and is printed on the physical card and is used during check out for an additional security measure.