Risk & Rules
Chargebacks & the MATCH list, explained
MATCH (Member Alert to Control High-risk Merchants) is a database, operated by Mastercard, where acquirers record merchants whose accounts they have terminated for cause — excessive chargebacks, fraud, or breach of scheme rules. Most acquirers check it during underwriting, so a listing makes getting a new merchant account significantly harder.
How you end up on it
When an acquirer terminates a merchant account for cause, it records the merchant — business and named principals — against a reason code: excessive chargebacks, fraud conviction, PCI non-compliance, illegal transactions and several others. Listings generally remain for five years.
Merchants are rarely told explicitly. The usual discovery is a string of unexplained declines from new providers after a termination.
What to do about a listing
First, find out the facts: which acquirer listed you, and under which reason code — your former acquirer must tell you. If the listing is factually wrong, the listing acquirer is the only party who can correct it, and you should pursue that directly.
If the listing is accurate, honesty is the strategy. Specialist underwriting can and does approve MATCH-listed businesses when the underlying cause is explained, remediated and evidenced — new compliance controls, resolved disputes, a credible plan. What kills applications is concealment, because every acquirer will see the listing anyway.
Put it to work
Frequently asked questions
How long does a MATCH listing last?
Listings generally remain on the database for five years from the date they are added.
Can a MATCH-listed business get a merchant account?
Yes — with specialist underwriting, full disclosure of the listing and its cause, and evidence the underlying problem is fixed. Concealing a listing is the one reliable way to be declined.
Prefer a straight answer about your own case?
Tell us your sector and what you’re trying to set up — a specialist responds, typically within one business day.