Understanding Your Adyen Card Account

What is this page about: This page explains how your Adyen-based Card account works with Light, including who holds your balance, how top-ups are validated and timed, and how to get a statement or balance confirmation for your own records or an audit.

# On this page

• How your Card account is structured
• Where your balance sits and how to confirm it
• Top-up requirements
• Timing of a top-up
• Confirming your entity's Adyen verification
• If a top-up doesn't arrive
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Related articles

# How your Card account is structured

Your Card account with Light is built on top of Adyen, a global financial technology platform listed on Euronext Amsterdam (ticker: ADYEN). Adyen holds its own banking licenses, including a credit institution license from De Nederlandsche Bank (passported across the EEA), banking authorisation from the PRA and FCA in the UK, and a US banking license. This means Adyen itself acquires, processes, settles and safeguards your funds, rather than relying on a separate sponsor bank.

Light is contracted with Adyen as the merchant of record, and you're onboarded to Adyen under Light's platform account as a sub-merchant. We connect your Card account to the rest of your Light workspace and give you tools to manage and report on it. Your transactions and balance are tracked at the sub-merchant level, shown to you individually in Light, and kept separate from any other client's.

# Where your balance sits and how to confirm it

Your balance is administered on one of Adyen's virtual balance accounts, a ledger construct rather than a bank deposit, and is classified as "funds in transit". Custody and processing rest with Adyen as the licensed party. Light's role is connectivity and platform administration. Each client's balance is separately identifiable, distinct from Light's own operating funds and from other clients'.

Two practical consequences for finance and audit teams:

• Because the balance is funds in transit on a virtual account rather than a bank deposit, it does not accrue interest.
• Although the commercial and technical relationship runs through Light, balance confirmations come from Adyen and speak to the client's own sub-merchant balance. The processes below are designed to evidence exactly this.

Need documentation for month-end close or an audit? Here's where each comes from.

Internal reconciliation and month-end close. You generate statements from the statement generator on the Apps page in Light, using the same login you already have, and they are based on Adyen's underlying statement report. Access is role-scoped: a controller can generate and export statements without broader admin access, and no request through Light's support team is needed.

External audit. Where a statutory audit requires confirmation of cash held, Light coordinates the request with Adyen so the auditor receives a confirmation of the client's own sub-merchant balance, rather than a consolidated or Light-controlled figure. To request this, please contact your Light representative.

# Top-up requirements

Adyen sets three requirements for a top-up to be made available, and Light cannot override them. If any is not met, Adyen returns the funds and you send a new top-up that meets it.

# Timing of a top-up

Before funds are available in Light, a top-up goes through your bank's own processing time and Adyen's checks on the sending account.

Adyen processes incoming top-ups every working day at 7am CET:

• If the top-up is in the same currency as your Card balance, funds become available as soon as Adyen has received and processed the transfer.
• If it's in a different currency, funds become available at the next day's 7am processing run.

On top of this, your sending bank's own processing time applies, normally 2-3 business days, though a SWIFT transfer can take up to a week. Put together, a top-up typically takes around a week from start to finish. If it's taking noticeably longer, contact your Light representative with your proof of transfer so they can check on it with Adyen.

# Confirming your entity's Adyen verification

Before sending a top-up, confirm your entity has completed Adyen's verification process:

1. Go to Settings > Entities in Light.
2. Open the entity linked to the Adyen account you're funding.
3. In the Cards section, check the Legal documents field. Once onboarding is complete, this shows as Verified.

If your entity isn't yet verified, or you're unsure which of your bank accounts Adyen has approved for top-ups, check with your team or Light support before sending a transfer. Sending from an account Adyen hasn't approved will result in a returned transfer rather than a successful top-up.

# If a top-up doesn't arrive

1. Confirm your entity is verified with Adyen. Check the Legal documents status in Settings > Entities > Cards. If your entity isn't verified, or the sending account wasn't one Adyen has approved, that's likely the cause.
2. Send again from a verified account. Don't wait for the original transfer to be returned. Starting a new transfer immediately is the fastest way to get your account funded.
3. Reach out to Light support with your payment receipt. Support can track the return of the original transfer and keep you updated.
4. If the sending account is correct, contact Light support so the transfer can be investigated directly with Adyen.

# Frequently Asked Questions

When will my top-up show up after Adyen receives it?

It depends on the currency. If it matches your Card balance's currency, funds are made available as soon as Adyen finishes processing the transfer. If it's a different currency, the funds move over at the next day's processing run, so they typically show up by the next business day.

How long does the bank transfer itself take, on top of that?

Add however long your sending bank takes to complete the transfer in the first place. That's normally 2 to 3 business days. A SWIFT transfer can take longer, up to a week in some cases.

What if it's taking longer than that?

If it's taking noticeably longer than the windows above, reach out to Light support with your payment receipt and we'll investigate with Adyen on your behalf.

Why don't top-ups appear instantly?

Every top-up passes through a few steps before it's available: your bank's own processing time, Adyen's verification check on the sending account, and Adyen finishing the transfer on their side. This is normal and doesn't mean anything is wrong with your top-up.

Can I get a statement of my balance and transactions?

Yes. As an Admin or a Controller in Light, go to the Apps page in Light and use the statement generator to export a statement for any period, on demand.

Can I get independent confirmation of my balance for an audit?

Yes. Contact your Light representative, and they'll work with Adyen to arrange confirmation of your balance directly.

# Related articles

• Setting Up Light Cards (KYC)
• Issuing and Managing Corporate Cards
• Connecting your first bank account
• Contacting Light Support