Payment processor Fiserv is trying to become the first company to obtain a merchant acquirer limited purpose bank charter in Georgia.
The move would allow Fiserv to authorize, settle and clear payment transactions for merchants. Doing so would let the Brookfield, Wis., company, which typically uses bank partners as part of payment processing, control the entire process.
Fiserv expects to complete the process in the first half of this year.
“We are taking this step in response to recent market changes, as third-party financial institutions that have traditionally provided access to the card networks as sponsor banks increasingly focus on other areas of their business,” a Fiserv representative told Payments Dive.
“Fiserv has no intention to become a traditional financial institution or regional bank,” the representative added. “Fiserv also will continue to partner with financial institutions that want to remain active in the market as acquiring sponsors.”
Georgia created the MALPB charter in 2012.