How and when do payments get processed?
Overview
Payment processing refers to what happens after a user makes a payment. Processing here refers to Zai's interactions with the users’ banks behind the scenes, and the workflow that the funds go through.
In Australia, Zai processes payments in batches. Each transaction gets included in a batch. Collectively and in our documentation, this is called the batch, or batch transactions.
Note: Batch processing typically applies to direct debit and direct credit payments. Credit card payments are applied instantly.
Payin workflows
While we give our buyers the peace of mind by confirming their payments, this does not mean that we receive the actual funds immediately. We can consider payins as funds receivable until it has cleared the buyer’s bank. Meanwhile, we pay the seller using Zai's funds. These amounts reconcile upon successful bank processing, usually after 2 business days.
Payin workflows track the funds paid from a buyer’s account into the Zai vault. Upon a successful payment, Zai applies funds to the seller’s digital wallet while waiting for the seller’s bank to clear the direct debit transaction.
The payin workflow ends when the funds successfully clear the buyer’s bank into Zai's vault.
Payout workflows
While we give our sellers the peace of mind by applying payments to their wallets, this does not mean that the funds are available for disbursement immediately. We can consider payouts as funds payable until it has been applied by the seller’s bank. The funds become available upon successful bank processing, usually after 3 business days.
Payout workflows track the funds paid out from the Zai vault to the seller’s account. After a successful payin batch, Zai proceeds to credit the funds to the seller’s bank account (called a disbursement account).
The payout workflow ends when the funds successfully clear Zai's vault into the seller’s bank account.
Schedule
In Australia, batches currently run (excluding non-processing days), at the following Melbourne/Sydney times:
| 8:30am | 2:30pm | 5pm | 7pm |
In the UK, payins will be processed and settled in near to real-time (excluding non-processing days). For payouts, transactions will be sent for processing every 30 minutes.
Domestic transfers usually clear within 1-2 business days, while international transfers can take up to 5 business days. Slow-to-pay countries may take longer.
Note that a payment undergoes both a pay-in batch and a payout batch. Thus, a complete payment workflow can last up to 10 days.
Bank holidays and other non-processing days like weekends also affect timeframes.