Payment Processing

This section explains the lifecycle of a transaction—from the initial authorization or auth+capture, through potential partial captures, voids, and final settlement. By separating "Transactions" (the high-level record of a payment, refund, or chargeback) from "Operations" (the actions that modify its state), our platform provides a transparent, step-by-step view of managing payments at each stage.

Transaction

A Transaction is the primary record representing the movement of funds—whether it’s a payment, refund, or chargeback. Each transaction includes key details such as:

• Unique transaction ID
• Merchant-specific external reference ID
• Transaction type (PAYMENT, REFUND, or CHARGEBACK)
• Amount and currency

This high-level entity serves as the core reference for all subsequent actions, offering a clear overview of the payment’s lifecycle.

Operation

An Operation is a discrete event describing a specific action taken on a transaction (e.g., authorization, capture, or void). Each operation:

• References the associated transaction
• Includes the operation type (e.g., authorize, refund)
• Records relevant data like amount, currency, origin, and timestamps

Operations form a detailed audit trail, tracking every step in the transaction’s lifecycle.

Relationship & Lifecycle

• Transaction as the “Container”
  A transaction captures the overall movement of funds (payment, refund, or chargeback). It stores essential details like transaction ID, external reference, amount, and currency.

• Operations as “Actions”
  Each operation records a specific event in the transaction’s lifecycle—such as authorization, capture, void, or expiration. It references the parent transaction, tracks the involved amount, and logs contextual details like origin and timestamps.

• Chronological Progression
  Multiple operations form a timeline for each transaction. For example, a transaction might begin with an authorize operation, transition to a partial_capture, and eventually conclude with a settle operation. At every step, the transaction’s status updates to reflect the most recent successful operation.

• Final Status Determination
  The most recent operation typically determines the transaction’s current status (e.g., AUTHORIZED, CAPTURED, VOIDED, SETTLED). By examining the sequence of operations, you can audit the entire transaction journey, from initiation to final resolution.

Key Takeaway

By keeping Transactions and Operations separate, our platform offers merchants a transparent, granular view of the payment journey—allowing them to monitor every authorization, capture, or void from start to finish.