Editorial Policy

Merchants in high-risk industries are often declined or closed without a clear reason. We publish what we learn from matching these businesses with payment providers: the rules that apply, what underwriters look at and what makes an application stronger. The aim is that a merchant understands their position before they apply anywhere.

We start from primary sources and say so when we rely on anything else.

• Laws and official gazettes, such as gambling acts, payment services regulations and ministerial ordinances.
• Regulators' rules, guidance, public registers and statements, such as those of the UK Gambling Commission, the Malta Gaming Authority, the FCA, ESMA and the FATF.
• Card scheme publications, such as Visa and Mastercard rules and programme documents.
• The published terms of well-known payment platforms, such as Stripe's restricted business list and PayPal's acceptable use policy.
• Law firm briefings and established trade press, used where an official source is not available and named as the source.

A fact we cannot confirm from a reliable source is left out, or clearly described as reported rather than confirmed. Licence pages list their sources at the end.

• Each page is researched from the sources above, and rules are given with their dates, such as when a law took effect, so a reader can see how current they are.
• We use software tools, including AI, to help with research and drafting. Every fact on a page is checked against its source before the page is published.
• We write in plain English and explain what a rule means for a merchant's payments, not only what it says.
• Pages never promise approval. Whether a business is accepted, and on which terms, is always the payment provider's decision.

Payment and gambling rules change often. When a rule changes, we update the pages it affects. Licence pages show the date they were last reviewed, and our main industry pages are reviewed at least every quarter.

• No payment provider pays to appear in our content, and we do not name or rank the providers we work with.
• Using Acquipayer is free for merchants. We are paid by the payment provider when a merchant we introduce processes with it, as explained in our Terms of Service.
• When we mention well-known platforms such as Stripe, PayPal or Shopify, we rely on their own published terms. We are not affiliated with them.

Our content is general information about how payment processing works. It is not legal, tax or financial advice, and it does not replace advice on your own situation from a qualified professional.

If you think something on our site is wrong or out of date, e-mail support@acquipayer.com with the page and what should change. We check every report against the source and correct the page if it needs it.