Payment gateway

A payment gateway is the software that sits at the point of payment, captures the customer’s card or account details, encrypts them, and hands them to the payment processor for authorisation.

How it works

• The customer enters details on a checkout page, payment link, or in-app form.
• The gateway encrypts them and forwards the request to the processor.
• It returns the answer — approved or declined — back to the checkout in seconds.

The gateway is the doorway; the processor is the plumbing behind it. One takes the details securely; the other moves them through the card networks and banks.

Why it matters

The gateway is where PCI risk concentrates: it touches raw card data, so any weakness there is a liability for the whole business. It is also where conversion is won or lost — a clumsy or slow checkout leaks sales before the money ever reaches your account.

How Fynex does it

Fynex takes payments through branded payment links and hosted checkout, so you collect without handling raw card data yourself — Fynex is PCI DSS Level 1. Invoices go out, get paid, and reconcile back to the books automatically. See invoicing and collections.