The information below will outline the various reasons an account could get pended with the Stax underwriting team, the “why” behind their request and documentation that can be provided to remediate. Your Partner Success Associate’s (PSA’s: [email protected]) are ready to help answer any questions your team may have to resolve a pended account and get your merchants one step closer to processing!

Helpful Tip: If documentation is uploaded to an application, you do not need to let our PSA team know. But, if a field is changed in the application then please be sure to send a quick slack or email over to the Stax team so we can alert our underwriting team.

Bank Verification Documentation

The Business bank account information provided could not be validated OR the bank verification was previously validating but is now failing. Please provide one (1) of the following acceptable forms of documentation (Please note: personal bank accounts are only acceptable for sole proprietorships):

1. Voided check
   1. MUST include the merchant's Legal Name or DBA
   2. Full account and routing numbers
2. Bank verification letter (BVL)
   1. MUST be on Official Bank letterhead
   2. Bank letter MUST include the Bank Name and Branch Address
   3. Bank letter and Void check MUST have Merchant Legal Name or DBA Name (if DBA is utilized)
   4. Bank letter and Void check MUST include the full account number (no truncated numbers)
   5. Bank letter and Void check MUST include the routing number
   6. Bank letter MUST include a signature and contact telephone number of an employee of the bank
   7. Bank letter MUST include “this account is active and is in good standing with the bank

Frozen Credit

Stax needs to be able to verify a passing score to ensure the merchant is in good financial standing to accept what is essentially a short-term loan from our sponsor bank while the funds are being transferred from their customer's bank account into their own.

1. Please ask the merchant to lift the credit freeze on their report for Experian so we can run credit (soft pull). Instructions from Experian HERE.
2. Please allow 72 business hours before the freeze is reinstated.

501(c)3

Please provide a 501(c)3 form to verify tax exempt status; we can not utilize a receipt for a tax-exempt purchase because it does not verify status with the IRS. The following documentation is acceptable to verify tax exempt status (Please note: Only one (1) document needs to be provided):

1. IRS exemption confirmation letter (must be approved, not the application)
2. Form 990 (most recent, dated in the last two (2) years)

Signer Verification

Additional documentation is needed to validate the signer information provided, as it cannot be verified via electronic resources. The following documentation is acceptable:

1. A copy of a government-issued photo identification showing the name and date of birth for the signer. Please provide one (1) of the following acceptable forms of documentation:
   1. Photograph of Drivers License (not expired, scans not accepted)
   2. Valid Passport
   3. Valid Passport Card
   4. Valid Military Identification Card
   5. Voter Identification
   6. Government-issued photo ID clearly displaying name and date of birth
2. A document showing the name and physical address for the signer (Please note: if the document provided for name and date of birth also shows current address you only need to provide the document once; no Post Office (P.O. Boxes)). Please provide one (1) of the following acceptable forms of documentation:
   1. Utility bill (dated within last six months)
   2. Cell or landline phone bill (dated within last six months)
   3. Motor vehicle registration (dated within last twelve months)
   4. 401k/brokerage statement (dated within last six months)
   5. Copy of grant deed on home or lease agreement for home
   6. Bank or credit card statement (dated within last six months)
   7. Identity card or driver's license with physical address listed (not expired)
3. A document showing the name and Tax Identification Number for the signer. Please provide one (1) of the following acceptable forms of documentation:
   1. SSN/ITIN card
   2. Letter from IRS assigning SSN or TIN
   3. 1099 Form (dated within last twelve months)
   4. Employer-issued W2 (dated within last twelve months)

Beneficial Ownership

Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations require that all individual beneficial owners of a business with 25% or more ownership provide the information listed below. Please confirm there are no additional owner(s) with 25% or more ownership in this business (yes or no) and, if yes, please add the following information for the beneficial owners to the application:

1. Legal Name
2. Physical Address (Please note: no Post Office (P.O.) Boxes)
3. Date of Birth (DOB)
4. Tax Id Number (TIN)

Business Verification

Additional documentation is needed to validate the business entity information provided, as it cannot be verified via electronic resources. The following documentation is acceptable:

1. A copy of a document reflecting entity registration. Please provide one (1) of the following acceptable forms of documentation:
   1. Articles/Certificate of Incorporation, Partnership Agreement, or similar document certifying business registration
   2. Government-issued business license/permit
   3. Certificate of Good Standing (must be active status and dated in the last twelve months)
   4. Copy of IRS Letter assigning EIN/TIN
   5. Screenshot of EIN/TIN assigned real-time during online application
   6. Previous year’s business tax return, prepared and signed by third party preparer
   7. Current bank or credit card statement displaying full or truncated EIN/TIN (dated within the past three months)
   8. Other government-issued documents that display full business name and nine-digit EIN/TIN (dated within the past six months)
2. A copy of a document reflecting the Employer Identification Number. (Please note: if the document provided for entity registration also reflects the EIN, you only need to provide the document once). Please provide one (1) of the following acceptable forms of documentation:
   1. Copy of IRS Letter assigning EIN/TIN (SS4 or 147c)
   2. Screenshot of EIN/TIN assigned real-time during online application
   3. Previous year’s business tax return, prepared and signed by third party preparer (full EIN must be displayed)
      Other government-issued documents that display full business name and nine-digit EIN/TIN (dated within the past six months)
3. A copy of a document reflecting the entity address. (Please note: if the document provided for entity registration also reflects the business address, you only need to provide the document once; no Post Office (P.O. Boxes)). Please provide one (1) of the following acceptable forms of documentation:
   1. Current business utility or phone bill (dated within the past three months)
   2. Current insurance or tax statement (dated within the past six months)
   3. Government-issued business license/permit
   4. Current Certificate of Good Standing (active status)
   5. Current bank statement displaying full business name (dated within the past three months)
   6. Current credit card statement displaying full business name (dated within the past three months)
   7. Other registration document filed with Secretary of State (for example: Certificate of Incorporation, Partnership Agreement, or comparable business registration document)

Processing History Documentation

If you have previously utilized a different payment processor, we would like to request you to provide your most recent three (3) months of statements from your prior processor to get a better understanding of anticipated processing and product usage.

Marketing Materials

Additional information needed to validate what the business is selling. Please provide one (1) or more of the following:

1. Website/URL (must be active)
2. Social Media pages
3. Flyer, brochure or other marketing collateral
4. Recent customer invoices

Bank Financial History Documentation

Additional information is needed to validate the merchant’s financial health and ability to support the requested annual volumes and high ticket amounts. Please provide the most recent three (3) months of banking statements.

Credit Stability Documentation

As part of the Underwriting process, we review information and documentation associated with your business and your anticipated business relationship with us to ensure we are providing the correct products, services, and prices for your business needs. Please provide one (1) of the following acceptable forms of documentation:

1. Most Recent Audited Financial Statement
2. Most Recent Company-Prepared Financial Statement
3. Audited Financials (dated in the last two (2) years)
4. Most Recent Business Tax Return (dated in the last two (2) years)
5. Most Recent Year-to-Date Financial Statement
6. Most Recent on-Demand Balance Sheet

Manual Review

No action needs to be taken on the partner / merchant end in the event of a manual review. A manual review indicates that the merchant’s application has been reviewed by Stax’s underwriters and is now waiting on our backend processor and sponsor bank to review.

If an account is in manual review, Stax does not have control to resolve and is instead working with our third parties to remediate in a timely manner.

Additional Information

Additional information is needed to understand the business model of the entity and the risk associated. Please confirm the following information:

1. Are payments taken in advance of a product or service delivery? If so, please provide the following information regarding the business’ deposit policy:
   1. How much money is required up front, as a percentage?
      Example: 10% required up front and 90% at time of order fulfillment
   2. How far in advance is a deposit required?
   3. How far in advance is a deposit required?\
      
2. Please confirm whether you have an international supplier. If so, please confirm one of the following about inventory:
   1. Are you required to have a port release on the inventory?
   2. Do you drop ship directly from your supplier?
   3. Do you consistently maintain inventory on hand or order from your supplier as you receive orders?
3. Please confirm your average order fulfillment timeframe in the number of days from the day you receive payment to the day the product is delivered or service is rendered to your customer.
4. Please confirm your refund and/or return policy
   Example: When can a merchant request a refund? Under what circumstances? Is there a certain time period a merchant would need to adhere to?
5. Please confirm if you take custom orders.
   This can be a yes or no answer to help Stax determine the risk associated.
6. Please confirm if you offer a subscription-based product or service and, if so, what is the billing cycle of the subscriptions (e.g., monthly, quarterly, annually)?
   1. Confirmation on subscription-based billing helps Stax understand the risk associated with the account related to delayed billing for products and services.
7. Please confirm and provide clarification on annual volumes, as well as average and high ticket amounts, specifically as to how the volumes align with your business model and transaction structure (e.g., are you processing one-time purchases for goods/services, partial/full deposits, monthly/quarterly/annual subscriptions - and if there are multiple transaction types the anticipated split out of payment types (e.g., 90% one-time purchases, 5% monthly subscriptions, 5% annual subscriptions)). Please note: Annual Volume cannot be $0, please update accordingly)
   These details can help Stax understand the merchant’s business model, processing needs and risk associated with the account once approved.