Key takeaway: A payment provider owning its own US acquiring license generally means fewer handoffs between the merchant, the provider, and the card networks, which typically helps chargeback and dispute response times.
Checkout.com went live with direct US card acquisition on September 9, 2026, activating the Merchant Acquirer Limited Purpose Bank charter it received from Georgia’s Department of Banking and Finance in January, according to Digital Transactions and the company’s own newsroom.
The charter lets Checkout.com connect directly to US card networks instead of routing transactions through a third-party acquiring bank, a change the company says gives it more control over the payment lifecycle and room to move faster on new features. “Going live on the MALPB is a defining step in our US journey. It reflects years of investment, regulatory rigor, and operational build-out to create a stronger acquiring foundation in the US,” said Jordan Reynolds, MALPB CEO and Head of North American Banking at Checkout.com.
Checkout.com said its US volumes grew about 70% in 2025, making the US its fastest-growing region, and the company counts Spotify, HelloFresh, eBay, Uber, Pinterest, Vinted, Klarna, Financial Times, and Sony among its enterprise clients. It processed more than $300 billion in global ecommerce volume in 2025 and has built out a strategic hub in Atlanta alongside existing New York and San Francisco offices.
Why it matters for merchants: For US merchants using Checkout.com, direct acquiring removes a layer of intermediary risk and could mean faster dispute resolution and fewer processing hiccups, since Checkout.com now controls more of the transaction path itself instead of depending on a third-party bank partner.
Sources: Digital Transactions; Checkout.com