Reconciliation file is a structured report from an acquirer, payment service provider or bank listing every transaction, fee, refund and adjustment within a settlement, so the recipient can prove the money credited matches the sales it recorded. Rows typically carry order reference, provider transaction ID, transaction and value dates, gross amount, currency, fees split into interchange, scheme and markup, net amount and a payout reference. Card acquirers mostly send CSV or fixed-width files, while banks use MT940 or camt.053. Matching runs against orders, then bank credits, then contract fee rates. For an EMI or PI, these files evidence daily safeguarding reconciliation, and buyers review months of files and break logs for control weaknesses.
What is a reconciliation file made of
Each row usually carries the merchant's own order reference, the provider's transaction ID, the transaction date and the value date, gross amount, currency, the fee split into interchange, scheme and markup where the pricing is interchange++, the net amount, and a payout or batch reference. Card rows often add an acquirer reference number, which is what a dispute team needs later.
Formats vary. Card acquirers mostly issue CSV or fixed-width text files by SFTP or API; banks deliver statements as SWIFT MT940 or its ISO 20022 successor, camt.053. Many providers send a daily file and a separate monthly invoice for fees charged outside the settlement.
How does payment reconciliation file work
Matching runs in three passes. First, the merchant's order system is matched to the provider file by reference, which catches orders captured but never settled. Second, the file's net total per payout reference is matched to the bank credit. Third, fees in the file are checked against the contract rates.
A worked example: a Tuesday file shows 1,240 transactions worth €86,400 gross, 18 refunds of €1,350, one chargeback of €220 and fees of €1,210. Net should be €83,620. If the bank shows €83,600, the €20 gap is typically a chargeback fee billed in a line the matching rule missed.
Settlement reconciliation file explained
The settlement reconciliation file is the specific variant tied to one payout. Its total must equal the credit exactly, which makes it the basis for a net payout check. Transaction-level reports, by contrast, are organised by sale date, so a card taken at 23:50 on the last day of the month may appear in one report and settle in the next.
The file is the input to balance reconciliation, which works at account level rather than transaction level.
Why the file matters in due diligence
For an EMI or PI, reconciliation files are also the evidence behind safeguarding. The firm must show every day that client money held in safeguarding accounts equals what it owes customers, and regulators ask for the daily reconciliation trail during inspections. A buyer reviewing a payment business will request several months of these files and the breaks log. Persistent unexplained differences, or breaks cleared by manual write-offs, point to control weaknesses that may already be on the regulator's radar.