Payments Risk Has Changed. Are Merchants Falling Behind?
Managing payments risk today isn’t just about fraud. While fraud and chargebacks remain critical, they are only part of a broader ecosystem of risk controls now under greater scrutiny.
Visa, Mastercard and acquirers are no longer just looking at individual merchant performance. They now prioritise managing portfolio-wide risk, making sure one merchant’s issues don’t expose the entire ecosystem.
There are a number of programs across both schemes that act as independent triggers, each flagging a different type of risk:
BRAM (Business Risk Assessment and Mitigation from Mastercard) and VIRP (Visa Integrity Risk Program from Visa) assess whether a merchant’s business model still aligns with scheme and acquirer rules, even if the transaction data is clean.
VAMP (Visa Acquirer Monitoring Program) monitors fraud patterns and chargebacks at a portfolio level, with early signs leading to interventions like reserve increases or payout delays.
ECMP (Excessive Chargeback Merchant Program) and EFMP (Excessive Fraud Merchant Program), both from Mastercard, flag merchants who exceed chargeback and fraud thresholds, triggering compliance reviews.
VMSS (Visa Merchant Screening Service) and MATCH (Member Alert to Control High-Risk Merchants, Mastercard ) list merchants with severe violations, making it harder to secure approval from new acquirers in the future.
These programs redefine how risk is escalated. Along with portfolio-wide exposure now taking precedence, the shift also brings changes to how merchant activities are assessed and managed.
1. More scrutiny on business models
Clean fraud data isn’t enough. Acquirers are evaluating whether business models still align with the rules they were approved on.
2. Blacklisting hits harder
Scheme listings are carrying longer-term consequences, limiting future processing options and driving up costs.
3.Acquirers are acting sooner
Vamp interventions are kicking in earlier. Reserves, payout delays, and other measures now happen at the first signs of drift.
Managing risk today isn’t about reacting to alerts. Merchants need to detect issues early and stay aligned with acquirer expectations as the business evolves.
𝐀𝐜𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐬. 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐩 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦.
📧For a free compliance review and rate analysis, email info@streampayments.com
