About us
A payment gateway built around software platforms
BrainMerchant is built for software companies that want their customers to pay, or get paid, inside their software, by card or by ACH bank payment, through one provider.
Card and ACH
What BrainMerchant does
BrainMerchant is a payment gateway company: we provide credit card processing and ACH transaction services to software platforms.
We handle both credit card processing for platforms and ACH payment processing for platforms, so you work with one provider instead of stitching two together. ACH is a US payment network, so the ACH side is for US bank accounts.
BrainMerchant at a glanceA payment gateway company
- Payment gatewayBetween your platform and the payment networks
- Credit card processingCard payments over the card networks
- ACH processingFor US bank accounts, over the ACH Network
- Built for software platformsYour customers pay inside your software
Card and ACH from one provider
Our approach
How we think about platform payments
The beliefs behind every conversation we have with a software platform about card and ACH payments.
Payments belong where the work happens
Your customers already send invoices, collect rent or bill for services in your software. When they can take payment in the same place, nobody retypes an amount into another system or waits on a paper check.
Your customers deserve a choice of card or bank
Some payers want to use a credit card. Others would rather pay a larger bill straight from their bank account. Offering both lets each payer choose the method that fits the bill.
Payment rules should be explained plainly
Card network rules, the Nacha Operating Rules for ACH and the PCI Data Security Standard all shape how payments work inside your software. That is why we publish dated guides that explain them in plain language.
Every engagement starts with a conversation
Platforms differ in who their customers are, what they bill for, how large payments are and how often they happen. So before we talk about card or ACH processing, we learn how your platform works.
The payment path
Where BrainMerchant sits
BrainMerchant is the gateway between your platform and the payment networks. Each payment starts with your customer in your software and ends with money settling between banks.
- Your customer
- Your platform
- BrainMerchant
- Processor or bank
- Card or ACH network
- Banks
How we write our guides
We write our guides from primary sources where they are available, such as Nacha, the Federal Reserve, the PCI Security Standards Council and the card networks. Each of our payments guides for software platforms shows the date it was last reviewed and lists its sources after the main text.
When a figure comes from a secondary source rather than the rule or the network itself, we label it that way. If you spot something that looks out of date or wrong, send us a correction.
Keep reading
More about BrainMerchant
Start with card and ACH payment processing for software platforms, or go straight to the page that answers your question.
How it works
The parties in each card and ACH payment, and what each one handles.
Embedded payments
What it means to build payments into your software, and the models platforms choose between.
Payment processing by industry
How card and ACH payments tend to work in property management, healthcare, education and other kinds of software.
Payments FAQ
Short answers to common questions about card payments, ACH payments and BrainMerchant.
Get in touch
Tell us what your platform needs from payments
Tell us how your customers pay today, and we’ll walk you through where card and ACH payments fit in your software.