The Batch Payment API allows you to combine multiple transactions into a single API request.
The Batch Payment API supports credit card and bank-to-bank (ACH/EFT) transactions. Each payment type must be processed with a separate batch request. Within a single bank-to-bank request, you can pay (credit) and collect (debit) funds.
Credit card and bank-to-bank transactions have different processing flows, settlement times, and fees.
Credit card transactions can be processed in real-time, or you can schedule them to process on a specific date. If you select a future date, those transactions will be processed at 3:00 AM (PST), on the date you’ve selected.
Settlement for batch credit card transactions is handled in the same way as the regular credit card settlement process. Typically a three day settlement lag can be expected. Higher risk accounts may have a longer settlement time.
Credit card fees will depend on your account but a percentage and a flat fee will apply. It's handled through the regular credit card settlement process.
Bank-to-bank transactions are dependent on bank cut-off times. Therefore, if you want to process a bank-to-bank transaction the same day, you need to submit the request before 11:00 AM (PST). Any request submitted after this time will be processed the following day.
Example processing flow with a 4-business day credit lag.
Day 0: A fitness software uploads a batch file through our Batch Payment API before the 11:00 am PST cut-off time. The fitness software uses the Batch Payment Report API to query the status of the transaction. The transaction status is ‘Scheduled’.
Day 1: The members of the fitness club are debited; the money is taken out of their bank accounts. The transaction status is ‘In process’.
Day 2-3: Bambora monitors for transactions being returned, where the money couldn’t be taken out of the members’ bank accounts. If a transaction is returned, the transaction status is ‘Rejected’.
Day 4: The money is deposited in the bank account of the fitness club. The transaction status is ‘Complete’.
Settlement for bank-to-bank transactions is typically 4 to 5 business days, to account for the risk associated with return payments. A payment can return if the bank account was closed, invalid, had insufficient funds, or was disputed. The return message typically takes a few days to be passed to Bambora. Therefore we need to ensure the transactions are valid before settling the funds.
Bank-to-bank transactions incur a flat fee. Payments are settled in full, and the fees are aggregated and charged to your account monthly.
Eg. For a batch with 5 debit transactions and 1 credit transaction, you will be charged for a total of 6 transactions.
For repeat customers or payments, you can use our Payment Profiles solution to store their payment information on our servers securely.
To query the status of your bank-to-bank batch and individual transactions, you can use our Batch Report API.