Company: PSEWF
Filing Date: 2025-03-04
Form Type: 20-F
Source: 0000950170-25-032340
Chunk: 80

Company: Paysafe Ltd
Filing Date: 2025-03-04
Form: 20-F
Item: Item 4
Chunk 80
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costs and expenses on or be disadvantageous to certain participants. Participants are subject to audit by the payment networks to ensure compliance with applicable rules and standards. The networks may fine, penalize or suspend the registration of participants for certain acts or omissions or the failure of the participants to comply with applicable rules and standards.
 
In order for our Merchant Solutions business to process and settle transactions for our merchants, we have entered into sponsorship agreements with banks that are members of the payment systems. Because we are not a “member bank” as defined by the major payment networks’ rules and standards, we are not permitted to access those networks directly; instead, we are required to access the payment networks through our sponsor banks. Our bank partners sponsor our adherence to the rules and standards of the payment networks and enable us to route transactions under the sponsor banks’ control and BINs across the payment networks to authorize and clear transactions. Payment network rules restrict us from performing funds settlement directly and require that merchant settlement funds be in the possession of the member bank until the merchant is funded. These restrictions place the settlement assets and liabilities under the control of the member bank.
 
Our sponsorship agreements with our bank partners also give our sponsor banks substantial discretion in approving certain aspects of our business practices, including our solicitation, application and qualification procedures for clients and the terms of our agreements with clients, and provide them with the right to audit our compliance with the payment network rules and guidelines. We are also subject to network operating rules and guidelines promulgated by the National Automated Clearing House Association (“NACHA”) relating to payment transactions we process using the Automated Clearing House Network. Like the payment networks, NACHA may update its operating rules and guidelines at any time, which could require us to take more costly compliance measures or to develop more complex monitoring systems. Similarly, our ACH sponsor banks have the right to audit our compliance with NACHA’s rules and guidelines, and are given wide discretion to approve certain aspects of our business practices and terms of our agreements with ACH clients.
 
We have obtained Principal Membership designation from Mastercard Europe and Visa Europe to offer merchant acquiring services to merchants in the European Union. With the Principal Membership of Visa and Mastercard, Paysafe is able to act as the acquiring bank. This means that we are solely responsible for the adherence to the rules and standards of these payment networks, and it enables us to route transactions under our own payment network licenses to authorize and clear transactions. Under our payment network licenses, we are allowed to perform funds