Transaction Types
Overview of transaction types supported by Nylon Pay
Nylon Pay supports multiple transaction types to cover the full spectrum of payment flows. Each type has distinct semantics around who initiates the action and the direction of funds.
Quick Reference
| Type | Direction | Initiator | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
collection | Customer → Merchant | Merchant | Money received from a customer |
payout | Merchant → External | Merchant | Money sent to an external party |
refund | System-internal | System | Internal return of funds |
reversal | System-internal | System | Internal reversal on failure |
charge | Fee deduction | Platform | Fee applied to merchant account |
chargeback | System-internal | System | Internal reversal by payment network |
Collection
A collection is a payment where funds move from the customer to the merchant. This is the primary transaction type for most use cases including mobile money payments, card payments, and bank transfers.
The merchant initiates the collection by creating a transaction and providing customer details. The customer then completes payment through their preferred method.
Payout
A payout moves funds from the merchant's Nylon Pay balance to an external party. Use this for disbursements, supplier payments, or any scenario where money leaves the platform.
Payouts require destination details (bank account, mobile money wallet) and are subject to provider availability and limits.
Refund
A refund is a system-internal transaction type representing a return of funds to a customer. Refund transactions are recorded on the platform ledger for accounting and reconciliation but are not initiated through SDK operations.
Reversal
A reversal is a system-internal transaction type representing an automatic undo of a transaction. Reversals occur when a provider reports a failure after a successful-seeming status, when a timeout invalidates a transaction, or when a pre-deducted disbursement is reverted on failure. They are recorded on the platform ledger without merchant action.
Charge
A charge is a fee or deduction applied to the merchant account by the platform. This includes transaction fees, platform fees, or other configured charges.
Charges appear as separate line items on the merchant's account statement.
Chargeback
A chargeback is a system-internal transaction type representing a forced reversal initiated by the payment network or regulator. They are recorded on the platform ledger for reconciliation. You may see them in your transaction history; they are not initiated through SDK operations.