The MATCH List - short for Member Alert to Control High-Risk Merchants is a confidential database used by acquiring institutions to share information about merchants who have been terminated for serious risk-related reasons. Often informally called the “Terminated Merchant File” (TMF), it serves as a risk control mechanism to prevent high-risk or non-compliant merchants from hopping between providers undetected.

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When a merchant account is closed due to activities such as:

• Fraud or transaction laundering
  
• Excessive chargebacks
  
• Illegal or prohibited activity
  
• PCI compliance violations
  
• Insolvency or business closure
  
  

The acquirer may be required to report the merchant and its associated principals or beneficial owners to the MATCH List.

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Before onboarding a new merchant, payment providers are expected to check the MATCH List as part of their due diligence. If a match is found, it indicates that the merchant has been flagged within the past five years. While being on MATCH does not automatically disqualify a business from obtaining a new account, it significantly raises the bar for acceptance.

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For instance, a merchant added to the MATCH List for excessive chargebacks might still be onboarded by a new acquirer—but only under strict conditions, such as:

• A rolling reserve or processing cap
  
• Mandatory fraud prevention tools
  
• A chargeback mitigation plan

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Merchants listed on MATCH are generally notified and provided with the applicable reason code. Removal from the list typically occurs after five years, or through a successful appeal process initiated by the original reporting acquirer.

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In essence, the MATCH List is a risk-sharing tool that protects the acquiring ecosystem by alerting providers to merchants with a problematic history—ensuring that repeat violations are not overlooked across the payments network.

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