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???? Glossary of Cross-Border Payments – Part 1: Fundamental Concepts of Cross-Border Payments

1. Cross-Border Payment（跨境支付）
   Cross-border payment refers to transactions where funds are transferred between two or more countries or regions. It typically involves different currency systems, regulatory requirements, and a more complex clearing and settlement process. Common scenarios include personal remittances, cross-border e-commerce purchases, B2B international trade payments, and corporate transfers.

???? Key Challenges: Currency conversion, compliance regulations, slow processing times, and high transaction costs.

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2. Payment Gateway（支付网关）
   A payment gateway is a technology solution that connects merchants (sellers) to payment processors, securely capturing, encrypting, and transmitting customers’ payment data (e.g., credit/debit card or local wallet information) to complete transaction authorization and processing.

???? Examples: Worldpay Gateway, Adyen Gateway, Stripe Gateway.

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3. Acquirer / Acquiring Bank（收单行）
   An acquiring bank (or acquirer) is a financial institution that partners with merchants to accept and process card payment transactions. It manages transaction validation, fraud prevention, clearing, settlement functions, and collects transaction fees from merchants.

???? Important Note: Acquirers must comply with PCI DSS standards and hold relevant payment licenses.

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4. Issuer / Issuing Bank（发卡行）
   An issuing bank provides cards (credit, debit, or prepaid cards) to consumers. It verifies and authorizes payment requests during a transaction and funds the authorized transactions. Issuers also assume a share of the credit and fraud risk.

???? Examples: ICBC (Industrial and Commercial Bank of China), American Express (Issuer).

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5. Card Acquiring（银行卡收单）
   Card acquiring refers to the merchant service of accepting and processing payments made by cardholders through swiping, inserting, tapping, or card-not-present transactions. Acquirers settle the collected funds into the merchant’s bank account.

???? Typical Scenarios: POS terminal card payments, online credit card payments, digital wallet payments (e.g., Apple Pay).

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6. Local Payment Methods (LPMs)（本地支付方式）
   Local Payment Methods are payment options that are widely adopted within specific countries or regions according to local consumer habits, often differing from global card networks such as Visa and Mastercard. Examples include Alipay and WeChat Pay in China, Sofort in Germany, and iDEAL in the Netherlands.

???? Value Proposition: Boosting conversion rates, expanding customer reach, and decreasing payment declines.

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???? Glossary of Cross-Border Payments – Part 2: Payment Transaction Process

7. Authorization（授权）
   Authorization is the process in which the issuing bank reviews and approves or declines a payment request. It ensures that the card details are valid, funds are available, and that there are no fraud risks before proceeding with clearing and settlement.

???? Typical Steps: Submission of payment data ➔ Payment gateway forwards it ➔ Routed to the issuer for verification.

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8. Clearing（清算）
   Clearing is the post-authorization process where payment processors, acquirers, issuers, and card networks reconcile transaction details, confirm obligations, and prepare for the actual transfer of funds during settlement.

???? It is typically handled by card network infrastructures like VisaNet and the Mastercard Network.

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9. Settlement（结算）
   Settlement is the financial process that follows clearing, whereby actual monetary funds are transferred from the payer’s bank (or issuer) to the payee’s bank (merchant’s account).

???? Key Timeframes: Typically 1-3 business days, or real-time in RTP systems.

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10. Chargeback（支付回滚）
    A chargeback occurs when a cardholder disputes a transaction and requests a reversal through the issuing bank. Chargebacks pose major risks for merchants, including financial losses and damage to brand reputation, especially in cross-border commerce.

???? Common Causes: Fraudulent transactions, incorrect charges, non-delivery of goods, unsatisfactory service.

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11. Dispute / Chargeback（拒付 / 支付异议）
    Dispute is a broader term that refers to any cardholder contesting a transaction. It may either lead to a formal chargeback or be resolved during the inquiry stage. Effective dispute management is critical for risk control in cross-border payments.

???? Key Measures: Maintain detailed transaction records, provide sufficient response evidence, optimize refund policies.

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12. Currency Exchange（货币兑换）
    Currency exchange involves converting funds from one currency to another to complete a cross-border payment or settlement. Typically, currency exchange carries fees and exposes users to exchange rate fluctuations.

???? Examples: USD ↔ EUR, CNY ↔ USD conversions in international payments.

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???? Glossary of Cross-Border Payments – Part 3: Fraud Prevention & Risk Management

13. Payment Fraud（支付欺诈）
    Payment fraud refers to unauthorized or illegitimate payment activities, often resulting from stolen card information, fake identities, or account takeovers. Fraud incidents are particularly prominent in the booming cross-border e-commerce sector.

???? Key Detection Technologies: AI/ML-based fraud detection, behavioral analytics systems.

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14. 3D Secure (3DS)（3D 认证）
    3D Secure is an online payment security protocol that adds an extra authentication step involving the merchant, issuing bank, and cardholder, to improve transaction security. Major versions include 3DS 1.0 and the more advanced 3DS 2.0.

???? Examples: Visa Secure, Mastercard Identity Check (formerly SecureCode).

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15. Risk Management（风险控制）
    Risk management encompasses identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks associated with payment transactions. It includes monitoring suspicious activity, deploying fraud prevention tools, and setting transaction limits to prevent financial losses and regulatory penalties.

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16. Compliance（合规）
    Compliance ensures that payment institutions meet the applicable regulatory and legal requirements across jurisdictions. Compliance covers areas such as AML (Anti-Money Laundering), data protection (GDPR), and payment service regulations (PSD2).

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17. Know Your Customer (KYC)（客户身份验证）
    KYC is the process of verifying the identity of customers by financial institutions before establishing formal customer relationships. This involves validating personal information, ID documents, and proof of address to combat fraudulent accounts and money laundering.

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18. Anti-Money Laundering (AML)（反洗钱）
    AML refers to a range of measures and regulatory requirements aimed at preventing criminally derived funds from entering the financial system. Payment providers must implement AML programs, report suspicious activities, and maintain effective monitoring systems.

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