Visa, one of the most popular card companies, maintains a database known as the TMF List (for “Terminated Merchant Files”). For Mastercard, this data repository is known as the MATCH list. Both lists include data related to merchant accounts and function in a similar fashion. Credit card processors throughout the world have shut off the vast majority of the accounts on both lists. High chargeback rates or one of Mastercard’s fourteen rule violations are the most common reasons for a merchant to be added to the MATCH/TMF list. Excessive chargebacks and money laundering are the two most typical causes of inclusion on the MATCH list.
How does the TMF list work?
To determine whether or not a possible new user has a TMF, all credit card processors frequently consult the MATCH list. If a merchant’s account is terminated due to a violation of terms and conditions, such as chargebacks, merchant collusion, unlawful transactions, or fraud, the company must put the merchant on the MATCH list. Usually, this happens the day after an account is closed or becomes subject to closure.
Despite the fact that TMFs are meant to only provide information, many credit card processors will not work with merchants who appear on Mastercard’s database. This is due to the fact that only Mastercard’s database can cover such a large geographical area.
Though MasterCard is in charge of the TMF, acquiring banks can add or drop merchants as they see fit. It is stated in MasterCard’s Security Rules and Procedures that the firm takes no attempt to determine the accuracy or justification for the listing of any merchant on the TMF list and that the information included therein may be incorrect or that the circumstances eventually leading to a merchant’s inclusion on the list may be argued.
