Digital payments continue to expand, and so do the ways money moves between accounts. One area gaining attention is the account funding transaction, or AFT. For businesses, understanding how AFT payments work can shed light on new opportunities to serve customers, reduce friction, and improve financial flows. This guide breaks down how AFT transactions operate, where they are used, and what they mean for merchants looking to improve their payment strategies.
An account funding transaction, often called an AFT transaction, is a type of funding transaction that moves money from a cardholder’s payment card into another account. Instead of paying a merchant for goods or services, the cardholder uses their card to add funds to a digital wallet, a prepaid card, or to an account held at a financial institution. These AFT payments are enabled by card networks such as Visa or Mastercard, processed by a payment service provider, and recorded with a unique identifier for traceability and reconciliation.
While AFT and original credit transactions (OCTs) both involve moving money, their directions differs. An AFT transaction is about account funding: pulling money from a card to load into another account. By contrast, an OCT is about paying out: pushing funds from an account to a cardholder’s payment card. Think of AFT as inflow and OCT as outflow.
Businesses often use OCTs for disbursements like refunds or gig worker payouts, while AFT payments are better suited for digital wallet top-ups, prepaid card loading, or general account funding. Understanding this distinction helps merchants design better payment flows for their customers and reduce unnecessary complexity.
AFT transactions support a wide range of funding scenarios. Some of the most common include:
Prepaid cards rely on account funding to function. A cardholder preloads a balance through an AFT, giving them the ability to spend within a set limit. Merchants who issue prepaid cards use AFT payments to give customers a smooth prepay experience and minimise reliance on cash or bank transfers.
Digital wallets depend heavily on account funding. A cardholder adds money into their wallet through an AFT transaction, then spends from the wallet balance across multiple merchants. This model is critical for ecosystems where wallets act as the primary payment method.
Many money transfer services use AFT to load funds before enabling a payout. For example, a user funds their account with a debit or credit card via an AFT transaction and then sends that money to another person. Payroll disbursements can also be supported when employers pre-fund cards or wallets used by employees.
While less common, AFT can also work in reverse funding situations. Some wallets allow users to withdraw funds back to their payment card, requiring a paired flow with OCT for final crediting.
Marketplaces often need to collect funds and redistribute them. AFT transactions help facilitate wallet or account loads before payouts are executed to sellers. This ensures liquidity is available for subsequent distribution.
For merchants, AFT payments bring tangible advantages:
Implementing AFTs requires planning, but the process is straightforward with the right partners.
When integrated properly, AFT payments give merchants new ways to engage customers, streamline account funding, and expand into new revenue opportunities.
As account funding becomes more central to digital payments, many merchants look for a payment service provider that simplifies adoption. PSPs like Antom empower businesses with APIs that support wallet top-ups, transfers, withdrawals, and settlement flows across currencies and accounts. Combined with advanced risk management and flexible settlement, this allows you to scale account-related payment operations globally while focusing on your core business.