Updating a Bank Account
There are scenarios in which you might want to update your existing account on the Platform, as opposed to adding a new bank account. This could be the result of fraudulent activity on your account where your bank provides you with a new account and/or routing number. This guide walks you through the update and validation process required to update the information for your existing bank account.
Note: This process and its review period apply to Merchant and Referrer-level users.
Bank Account Types and Requirements
All Merchants or Referrers boarded to the Platform must have an active U.S.-based bank account on file. A bank account serves two purposes for an entity:
Account for Deposits: A required bank account to receive deposits from Available Balance funds
Account for Debits: A required bank account to be debited to cover negative balances owed
Merchants or Referrers can use one bank account on file for both payouts and debits, individual bank accounts for deposits and debits, or multiple bank accounts with unique, individual purposes.
Bank Account Validation
As a Payment Facilitator, the Platform validates any bank account submitted by an entity. This validation includes active status, type of account, and ownership and prevents funds from being sent to an incorrect bank account due to a typo or invalid information.
To perform the validation, the Platform uses Plaid to allow Merchants or Referrers to link their bank accounts for instant validation using a Portal lightbox to securely log in to their bank for integration.
Manual Bank Account Validation - Supporting Documents
If an entity manually submits its bank account information, they are required to submit documentation to Platform Risk for account validation. See steps 2-4 in the Manually Update with the API section.
Qualifying Bank Account Supporting Documentation:
A voided check
A bank letter
A bank statement
For existing bank accounts, supporting documents are only required if the routing or account number fields are being updated. Changes to account types do not require supporting documentation.
When entering information in the Portal for a new bank account manually, like account and routing numbers, a file upload window at the bottom of the form requires a document file to be uploaded before the form can be submitted.
Warning: For existing bank accounts having account or routing numbers updated, a manual review of the supporting documents is required for approval and can take up to 5 business days.
Critical Warning: During the 5-day manual review and approval period, all payments processed will still be funded to your Portal account’s available balance and will be ready for immediate withdrawal to your bank account, once validated.
Manually Update in the Portal
The Portal uses the Banking tab within the Merchant or Referrer Profile to update or add new bank account information to a specific Entity. In instances where an entity’s banking institution does not currently integrate with Plaid, or the Entity would like to manually add the account, this option is useful.
To manually update an existing bank account in the Portal, follow the steps below:
Navigate to the Merchants or Referrers page within the Management category.
Click on the desired Merchant to bring up their Merchant Profile or Referrer Profile.
Click the Banking tab on the left.
Click the edit icon button in the upper-right corner.
Click ADD ACCOUNT MANUALLY in the lightbox and view the prompt below:
“Adding a new bank account will take up to 5 business to verify, you can continue to use your current bank account until your new account is confirmed
You will be required to upload a void check, bank statement, or bank letter to verify your account, Thank you for helping to keep your account safe.”
Click Continue on the prompt, then click ENTER ACCOUNT MANUALLY.
Enter the Type of bank account, Routing & Account Number, and Usage Options
Click ADVANCED OPTIONS to add an optional bank account name and description.
Upload one of the qualifying support documents into the Upload and Attach Files field.
Click ADD to complete the process.
Note: You will not be able to use this manually added account for up to 5 business days from update or creation.
Manually Update with the API
See the multi-step process below to update an existing bank account’s information and upload supporting documentation:
Update the existing information for the bank account:
PUT /accounts/{id}Upload supporting documentation for the change:
Create the new Note Resource:
POST /notesCreate a Document Resource to associate with the upload:
POST /noteDocumentsUpload the document or image file:
POST /files/noteDocuments/{id}
Create a Document Resource to Associate with the Note - Example Code Snippet
Visit the Payrix Pro API Documentation for parameter descriptions and valid values.
Request URL & Header
POST /noteDocuments HTTP/1.1
Accept: application/json
Content-Type: application/json
Host: api-test.payrix.com
APIKEY:{{private_api_key}}Example Request Body
{
"note": "t1_not_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx",
"type": "png",
"documentType": "voidCheck",
"description": "Updating Existing Bank Account.",
"name": "Voided Bank Check for ABC Company",
"status": "created",
inactive: "0",
frozen: "0"
}voidCheck is used in the example above, but any of the following documents can be used in this process:
voidCheck: A voided check for bank account verificationbankStatement: A bank statementbankLetter: A bank letter for verification
Warning: Submitting the wrong documentType (for example, submitting a bank letter when voidCheck is selected) can cause significant delays in underwriting approval.
Example Response
{
"id": "t1_ntd_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx",
"created": "2024-08-18 13:22:51.2252",
"modified": "2024-08-18 13:22:51.2252",
"creator": "t1_log_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx",
"modifier": "t1_log_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx",
"note": "t1_not_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx",
"type": "png",
"documentType": "voidCheck",
"name": "Voided Bank Check for ABC Company",
"description": "Updating Existing Bank Account",
"status": "created",
"inactive": "0",
"frozen": "0"
}