Merchant agreement

SeamlesPay lets you collect payments (virtual accounts, payment links, checkout by card, bank transfer, OPay and USSD) and send payouts to Nigerian bank accounts, through our dashboard and API.

SeamlesPay is not a bank. Our partners’ rules also apply to your payments.

• Before you can take live payments we must approve your application. We check the identity of the owners and directors (including BVN and NIN), your business documents, your business category and your website.
• You must give true and complete information and tell us within 7 days if anything important changes.
• We may ask for more information at any time, and may refuse an application without giving a reason.
• Some categories (betting, crypto, forex and investments, loans, ajo and contributions) are high-risk. They need extra review and may have lower limits or extra holds.
• You may run more than one business. Each one needs its own application and approval.

You must not use SeamlesPay for:

• anything illegal in Nigeria, or money from crime;
• Ponzi schemes, pyramid schemes, “money doubling”, and investments that promise fixed high returns;
• unlicensed betting, lending, investment, forex, insurance or money transfer businesses;
• fake, counterfeit or stolen goods, and goods that break someone else’s copyright or trademark;
• weapons, ammunition, explosives, illegal drugs and prescription medicine without a licence;
• adult content, escort services, and anything involving minors in a harmful way;
• collecting money for another business, or letting another business use your account (“payment facilitation”) unless we agree in writing;
• buying or selling bank accounts, BVNs, SIM cards or personal data;
• anything else our partners or the Central Bank of Nigeria do not allow.

We may add to this list. Licensed businesses in a regulated category must show us their licence.

• Your account is for the business and website we approved. Changing your website needs our approval.
• Live API keys only work from the server addresses (IP addresses) you register, and must be sent with your business ID.
• Live webhooks and customer return links must be on your approved website.
• Keep your secret keys safe. You are responsible for anything done with your keys or your dashboard sign-in.
• Businesses approved before these rules were given time to set them up; after that date live keys stop until they do.

• You pay the fees shown on our Pricing page, or the special price we agreed with you, as shown in your dashboard.
• Collection fees are taken from each payment before it reaches your balance. Payout fees are added to the payout.
• Prices include VAT where the pricing page says so; otherwise VAT is added where the law requires.
• We will tell you at least 14 days before we raise a fee. The new fee applies only to payments after that date.

• Bank transfers and virtual account deposits are added to your available balance once the bank confirms them.
• Card, OPay and USSD payments are pending until our partner settles them to us, usually the next working day.
• Withdrawals from the dashboard go only to the payout bank account we approved for you, and need your PIN or fingerprint. Changing the payout account needs our approval.
• Large withdrawals, or withdrawals above your daily limit, may wait for a check by our team before they are sent.
• If money is sent to you by mistake, it must be returned, and we may take it back from your balance.

We may hold payouts, keep part of your balance as a reserve, or delay settlement when:

• we see signs of fraud, or many complaints, refunds or chargebacks;
• your information is incomplete, false or out of date;
• a partner, regulator, court or law enforcement agency asks us to;
• you break this agreement.

We will tell you why where the law lets us. You agree that we may take from your balance (or from future payments) any amount you owe us, including fees, refunds, chargebacks, fines from partners caused by your business, and money paid to you by mistake. If your balance is not enough, you must pay us within 7 days of our request.

• You must have a fair refund policy and show it to your customers.
• To refund a customer through SeamlesPay, message SeamlesPay support with the payment reference and the reason. We check every request before money is returned.
• A refund is taken from your balance. Fees on the original payment are not returned.

A customer can ask their bank or card company to reverse a payment (a “dispute” or “chargeback”). When this happens:

• we tell you and may hold the disputed amount from your balance until it is settled;
• you must send us evidence (receipt, delivery proof, chat with the customer) by the deadline we give you, usually 2 working days, because the bank’s deadline is short;
• if the dispute is lost, or you do not reply in time, the amount (and any partner fee) is taken from your balance;
• if the dispute is won, the held amount is released back to you.

Too many disputes may lead to a reserve, lower limits, or closure of your account.

• Describe what you sell honestly, with the price in naira, and deliver what you sold.
• Show your business name, contact details and refund policy on your website.
• Follow consumer protection law, including the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2018.
• Handle your customers’ personal information lawfully under the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023.
• Never ask a customer for their card PIN, OTP or online banking password.

We must follow anti-money-laundering and anti-terrorism law, and the rules of the Central Bank of Nigeria and our partners. We run automatic risk checks on payments and payouts, may ask you about any transaction, and may report suspicious activity to the NFIU or other authorities without telling you, where the law requires.

You may close your account at any time by contacting us. We may suspend or close your account with notice, or immediately if we suspect fraud, you break this agreement, a partner or regulator requires it, or your business becomes a serious risk.

After closing, we pay out your remaining balance to your approved payout account, less any amount you owe and any reserve we need to keep for possible refunds and chargebacks (normally for up to 120 days). Money we are told to hold by a court or authority stays held.

You will cover us for losses, fines and costs we suffer because of your business, your products, your breach of this agreement, or anything done with your keys or account.

As far as the law allows, we are not responsible for loss of profit, business or data, or for indirect loss, and our total responsibility to you in any 12 months is limited to the fees you paid us in those 12 months. This does not limit our duty to pay you money that is yours, or responsibility that cannot legally be limited.

We are not responsible for delays or failures caused by banks, partners, networks, power or events outside our control.

• We may send notices to the email on your account or show them in your dashboard.
• We may change this agreement; we will give at least 14 days’ notice of important changes.
• You may not transfer this agreement to someone else without our written agreement.
• This agreement is governed by the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Disagreements we cannot settle by talking will be decided by the courts of Lagos State.
• Questions: support@seamlespay.com.