What happens during underwriting?
The sponsor bank verifies that the business exists and is properly registered, confirms the identity of owners holding a significant stake, checks the bank account that funds will settle into, and assesses the risk profile of the industry, average ticket and delivery timeline. Much of this runs electronically against identity, tax ID and banking data sources.
What causes an application to take longer than 48 hours?
Incomplete submissions, almost always. Missing bank statements, a voided cheque that does not match the business name, ownership percentages that do not add up, or a business description too vague to categorise.
Higher average tickets, longer delivery windows and industries requiring enhanced due diligence also extend the review.
Does a decision mean I can take cards immediately?
Approval is followed by boarding, where the merchant ID is issued and equipment or gateway credentials are configured. For online acceptance this can be same day. For card-present acceptance it depends on terminal delivery and setup. Existing processing usually continues uninterrupted while this happens.
Can I speed it up?
Submit everything at once. Have three months of processing statements ready if you have processing history, plus formation documents, the business tax ID, owner identification and a voided cheque for the settlement account. Describe what you sell in plain, specific terms.