Payment gateway for platforms
Card and ACH payment processing for software platforms
BrainMerchant is a payment gateway for software platforms. We process credit card and ACH bank payments, so your customers can pay and get paid without leaving your software.
- Credit card processing
- ACH bank payments
- One gateway for both
Acme Property Co.Invoice #1042
Amount due$1,250.00
- Pay by bankACH from a checking or savings account
- Pay by cardCredit card
Pay $1,250.00
Card and ACH payments processed by BrainMerchant
Payment submittedACH debit ยท $1,250.00
What we process
Two ways to pay, one payment partner
Cards made up over three-quarters of US noncash payments by number in 2024 and ACH almost three-quarters by value, per the Federal Reserve. We process both.
Payment gateway
BrainMerchant is the link between your software and the payment networks: the card networks for card payments and the ACH Network for bank payments.
Credit card processing
Let your customers pay by credit card inside your software. The card issuer answers in seconds, which suits deposits, bookings and payments that are due right now.
ACH payment processing
Let your customers pay directly from a US bank account through the ACH Network. ACH suits rent, invoices, tuition and other larger or repeat bills.
How a payment moves
From your customer’s click to the bank
BrainMerchant sits between your platform and the payment networks. Your customers pay inside your software, and each payment goes to the card networks or the ACH Network, depending on how they pay.
- Your customerChooses card or bank
- Your platformShows the payment screen
- BrainMerchantThe payment gateway
- Card networksFor card paymentsACH NetworkFor bank payments
- Bank accountsWhere the money settles
Card vs ACH
Two networks, two rhythms
A card payment gets an answer from the card issuer in seconds. An ACH payment is a request to move money between bank accounts, sent in a batch and settled between banks on a schedule. Knowing each network’s rhythm helps you decide where each method belongs in your product.
The ACH Network runs at scale: in 2025 it carried 35.2 billion payments worth $93 trillion, according to Nacha.
- An ACH debit settles on a set schedule, which under Nacha rules as of October 2026 is the next banking day, or the same day if it is sent as Same Day ACH.
- An ACH payment can still come back after it settles, and under the same rules most returns must reach the originating bank by the opening of business on the second banking day after settlement.
Card paymentCard networks
- AuthorizeThe issuer approves or declines
- CaptureThe sale is confirmed
- SettleFunds move between banks
- FundThe merchant is paid on its provider’s schedule
ACH paymentACH Network
- AuthorizeThe customer authorizes the debit
- OriginateThe entry is sent in a batch
- SettleFunds move between banks
- Return windowMost returns arrive within two banking days
Industries
Payments for the software your customers run on
Each vertical bills its customers differently, which changes where cards and bank payments fit. Start with yours, or compare payment processing by industry.
Property management
Monthly rent suits a bank payment, while application fees and one-off charges can go on a card.
B2B invoicing
Business clients can pay large invoices by ACH and smaller ones by card, with both options offered on each invoice.
Healthcare
Patients can pay a balance after insurance by card, and payment plans your software schedules can run as authorized ACH debits.
Nonprofits
Donors can give once by card or set up a monthly gift from their bank account, with the authorization the ACH rules require.
Education
Families can pay tuition installments from a bank account and smaller fees for trips or activities by card.
Field services
A deposit before the job can go on a card, and a large final invoice can be paid from a bank account.
Any software platform
If your customers send invoices, take bookings or issue statements in your software, card and bank payments can sit where that work already happens.
Getting started
From first conversation to first payment
Payment processing for software companies starts with how your software and your customers work, so that is where we begin.
Tell us about your platform
Who your customers are, what they sell or bill for, and how they get paid today.
Map your payment flows
Decide where card and ACH payments belong in your product, from invoices to checkouts.
Plan the integration
Work out with us how your software connects to BrainMerchant for card and ACH payments.
Start processing
Once your platform is approved and a written agreement is signed, your customers pay by card or bank inside your software, and BrainMerchant processes each payment.
Guides
Learn how payments really work
Plain guides to the card and ACH rules your platform works within, each with a review date and its sources.
Guide
How ACH payments work
The banks involved, debits versus credits, when entries settle between banks and how Same Day ACH fits in.
Guide
Chargebacks vs ACH returns
Who starts each one, how long the payer has, and why an ACH return is not a card dispute.
Guide
PCI compliance for SaaS platforms
What PCI DSS asks of a platform and its merchants, and how the way you collect card details changes your scope.
FAQ
Quick answers on payment processing for software platforms
What BrainMerchant does, which payments it covers, pricing and the first step, answered briefly.
What does BrainMerchant do for software platforms?
BrainMerchant is a payment gateway company that provides credit card processing and ACH transaction services to software platforms, so your platform can offer both card and bank payments to your customers. About BrainMerchant explains how we work with platforms.
Can our customers take both cards and ACH?
Yes. BrainMerchant is one provider for both, so your platform can offer card and bank payments side by side instead of adding a second provider. Read what our payment gateway for software platforms does in each payment.
Is BrainMerchant’s ACH for US bank accounts?
Yes. ACH is a US network; cross-border entries (IAT) follow their own rules, and our ACH side is for US bank accounts.
How is pricing handled?
We don’t publish pricing on this site. Ask our sales team about pricing and we’ll go over it with you.
What is the first step?
Send a few lines about your platform through the BrainMerchant contact form, or email us at the address below. The first conversation covers who your customers are and where card and ACH payments could fit in your software.
Talk to BrainMerchant
Give your customers card and ACH payments inside your software
Tell us about your platform and how your customers pay today. We’ll walk you through what adding card and ACH processing with BrainMerchant looks like.