Ecommpay launches partial approval for card payments

Ecommpay has launched Partial Approval for card payments, allowing merchants to accept a lower approved amount when a card has insufficient funds.

The feature is aimed at merchants that can work with partial collections, including top-up payments and subscription billing. Instead of treating an underfunded transaction as a full decline, the issuing bank can approve part of the requested amount and let the payment go through at that level.

Merchants can enable the feature for individual payment attempts using a single flag in the payment request. This allows businesses to choose when to accept partial collection without changing their existing checkout architecture, payment flow, or endpoint.

The parameter is sent with each payment request, so merchants can use the option only where it suits their commercial model. They do not need separate integrations for transactions where they want to permit partial approval and those where they do not.

On the customer side, the process is handled through Ecommpay's Hosted Payment Page. Cardholders see a warning label on the card entry screen, an information pop-up explaining partial authorisation, and a final screen showing both the requested amount and the amount approved by the issuer.

All of those screens can carry the merchant's branding. The approach is intended to keep customers informed when the approved amount is lower than the amount they originally tried to pay.

For merchants, the main use case is in areas where collecting part of a payment is still useful. In top-up models, for example, a customer may be able to add some funds to an account even if they cannot cover the full amount first entered. In subscription settings, a merchant may see value in taking a partial payment rather than recording a failed transaction.

"Not every declined payment has to be a lost one," said Max Ryzhov, Chief Product Officer, Ecommpay.

"When a customer's card doesn't have enough funds to cover the full amount they want to top up, Partial Approval allows the merchant to collect an amount the customer is able to pay. The customer can therefore complete a payment without starting over and entering a lower amount. This reduces friction and the risk of drop-off," said Ryzhov.

Merchant use

Partial approval is a card-scheme function rather than a separate payment type. The feature depends on the issuing bank approving a lower amount instead of rejecting the transaction outright when available funds do not cover the full request.

That distinction matters because many online payment journeys are built around a simple accept-or-decline model. When a transaction fails, customers often have to restart the process, enter a new amount, or switch to another payment method. Ecommpay's product is intended to avoid that extra step when a merchant is willing to accept less than the original value.

Founded in 2012 and headquartered in London, Ecommpay offers acquiring, payment methods, and processing through a single API. Partial Approval sits within its existing payment setup rather than requiring a separate build.

Ryzhov said the standard flow can turn a partly fundable transaction into a full failure. "Without Partial Approval, a transaction is treated as a decline in the standard flow when the issuer can cover only part of the requested amount. A declined payment means lost volume, lost activity, and potentially a lost customer. Partial Approval ensures a payment succeeds and an account is topped up, reducing the risk of lost revenue. The customer can top up the difference later, when additional funds are available, or use a different payment method. This reduces friction and frustration and allows the customer to continue their subscription, in-game purchase, or other activity uninterrupted," said Ryzhov.