What is the MATCH List?

August 5, 2021/ Jarrod Wright /

The MATCH List, or (Member Alert to Control High-Risk Merchants List) is a comprehensive database, created and managed by Mastercard. It gives financial institutions the ability to screen merchant applicants and determine what, if any, risk they pose prior to giving them an account.

When a merchant gets placed on the MATCH list, it indicates that they pose an above-average risk for acquirers. Simply put, it serves as a warning system for financial institutions against false merchant account information.

While it can help prevent fraud in some situations, it also makes a merchant’s job much harder. They might struggle to open a new merchant account after being placed on the list, even with another acquirer.

Let’s take a look at the qualifications for being placed on the MATCH List and what merchants can do to be removed.

What Leads to Being MATCHed?

Both the acquiring bank and Mastercard play a role in placing merchants on the MATCH list. One of the biggest causes for this is excessive chargebacks. Merchants who regularly surpass the acceptable chargeback thresholds will end up paying the penalty.

Besides chargebacks, there are other conditions and practices which lead to being MATCHed. They are categorized by a specific code for each offence. For example, a merchant could receive a Reason Code 07, or fraud conviction, meaning that one of the business’s owners was convicted of criminal fraud.

MATCH list reason codes encompass anything from insufficient or ineffective security, to money laundering and criminal fraud. According to Mastercard’s Security Rules and Procedures, if the acquirer terminates a merchant relationship based on one of these conditions, the bank must add the merchant to the list within five days of termination.

The Impact of Being MATCHed

The MATCH List is an effective reference tool for financial institutions. However, there are some instances, such as identity theft, that are outside the merchant’s control. The list contains data that has been reported and stored during the previous five years, meaning that any merchant added in the last 60 months will generate a MATCH result.

When a merchant is added to the MATCH list, though, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they can’t have a merchant account at all. The acquirer might decide that they are a worthwhile risk, and still grant them an account regardless of their standing on the list.

Generally, though, the merchant will have to apply to several acquirers before being accepted. They may also face other complications like higher processing fees, a long-term contract, and stiff penalties for early termination.

At the end of the day, merchants need an acquirer to accept card payments. Agreeing to work with a high-risk processer isn’t ideal, but it might just be the merchant’s only choice if they end up being MATCHed. Without the ability to accept payments, most eCommerce businesses will face a major decrease in revenue and could face shutting down.

Can a Merchant Get Off the List?

After a five-year period, a merchant’s data will be removed from the MATCH list. Besides this sure-fire way, there are two situations which might warrant a MATCH removal:

1. The acquirer can contact Mastercard on the merchant’s behalf and report that the MATCH request was made in error.
2. If the merchant was added under a reason code 12 (PCI-DSS Noncompliance), they can become compliant and be removed.

Getting removed from the MATCH list isn’t easy, and often has little chance of success. If the merchant was MATCHed by mistake, they’ll need concrete evidence of the mistake to take to the acquiring bank. Even then, there’s no guarantee that the bank will take action.

A merchant who ends up on the list due to PCI noncompliance still needs to work through the listing acquirer once compliance is achieved. Ultimately, banks aren’t required to cooperate, and removal is at their discretion.

The only definite way to ensure removal from the list is time. Merchants who have been placed on the list should take the time to optimize their business model to compensate for higher processing fees, and ensure that they get to the root of what caused the issue in the first place. It’s important to minimize risk as much as possible, as another canceled account will lead to five more years on the list.

Last Update: August 5, 2021