> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.shoppex.io/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Shoppex Payments > Accept card payments without your own Stripe or PayPal account. Shoppex Payments lets you take **Visa and Mastercard** without opening a merchant account anywhere. You apply from your dashboard, and once you're approved, cards show up at checkout alongside whatever else you already accept. It exists because the usual card options don't work for everyone. Stripe and PayPal decide who they'll serve, and digital-goods stores get turned away or shut down often enough that "just use Stripe" isn't advice — it's a gamble. Shoppex Payments is the card rail for stores that would otherwise have no card rail at all. **Cards only.** Shoppex Payments doesn't replace your other gateways. Crypto, PayPal, Cash App and manual methods keep working exactly as before — this adds a card option next to them. ## What it costs The Shoppex Payments gateway card in Settings, listing the card descriptor, fee and payout window One fee, no monthly minimum, no setup cost: | | | | ------------------------ | --------------------------------------------------- | | **Per sale** | 10% + \$0.50 | | **Paid out in** | USDC on the Ethereum network, to your wallet | | **Buyer pays** | Nothing extra — the listed price is the final price | | **Refunds** | Free | | **Disputes** | \$20 per dispute, charged when one is opened | | **Monthly / setup fees** | None | The fee comes out of your payouts, not out of the buyer's total. A $25 order stays $25 at checkout; you receive $22.00 ($25 − 10% − \$0.50). This is a higher rate than a mainstream processor charges a low-risk store, and it should be — it's priced for the risk profile that gets digital-goods stores declined elsewhere. If you can get and keep a Stripe account, Stripe will usually be cheaper. Run both if you like: buyers see whatever you enable. ## Applying The Shoppex Payments application form asking for store, business and account owner details It's in the sidebar under **Money**, and as a card in **Settings → Payments**. The form arrives pre-filled from your shop profile — store name, website, business country, company name. Correct anything that's out of date; this is what gets reviewed. Name, email, phone, date of birth and address of the person who owns the business. This is a legal requirement for card processing, not a Shoppex preference. Describe your products in a sentence, then confirm your store sells none of the prohibited categories below. You'll see the decision on the same page. Most applications are decided immediately. ### What you can't sell Shoppex Payments can't be used for: * Carding tools, hacking tools, and exploit kits * Stolen accounts, credentials, and account dumps * IPTV and other unauthorized streaming services * Gambling, betting, and casino services * Adult content and services * Weapons, ammunition, and explosives * Drugs, controlled substances, and related paraphernalia You confirm this when you apply. Selling any of it after approval gets the account suspended and can put your payouts at risk — the same way it would with any processor. If your application is declined, you'll see the reason on the page. A decline isn't permanent: fix what was flagged (usually incomplete business details) and apply again. ## After approval The approved Shoppex Payments page showing gross volume, orders, fees and net payout The page turns into your card-payments dashboard: gross volume, order count, fees and net payout, plus the transaction and payout history underneath. Two things happen automatically once you're approved: * **Cards appear at checkout.** You can switch them off any time with the toggle on the page — the approval stays, so you can switch back on later without reapplying. * **Your statement descriptor is set.** Buyers see `SHOPPEX*` followed by your store name on their card statement, so the charge is recognizable and you get fewer "I don't know this charge" disputes. ### Checkout Card payments open a secure checkout page on `pay.shoppex.io` — your logo, your brand colour, your store name. The buyer enters card details there and comes straight back to your store. The card form has to live on the processor's page rather than inside your storefront: that's what keeps card numbers out of Shoppex's systems and out of yours, and it's why you don't need PCI certification to accept cards this way. ## Payouts **Payouts are paid in crypto — USDC on the Ethereum network — not by bank transfer.** You need a wallet that can receive them. If you can't accept crypto payouts, this rail isn't for you, and you should stay on a gateway that settles to your bank. Buyers pay by card as normal; the conversion happens on the processor's side. Payouts run on a rolling schedule and reach you **within three business days** of a sale — the short cycle is part of the Shoppex partnership agreement, not a standard processing term. You'll find every payout, with its status and settlement period, on the Shoppex Payments page. Your payout wallet is set up with the processor after approval; Shoppex never sees or stores it. Payouts here are separate from your other gateways. Stripe pays out through Stripe, PayPal through PayPal, and Shoppex Payments on its own schedule — there's no shared Shoppex balance. See [Payouts](/merchants/payments/payouts). ## Refunds and disputes **Refunds** are issued from the order like any other payment, and cost nothing. The 10% + \$0.50 on the original sale is not returned to you — that's the processing cost of the sale that happened. **Disputes** (chargebacks) cost **\$20 each**, applied when a customer disputes a charge through their bank or payment provider — so the fee lands when the dispute is opened, not when it's decided. If the dispute is then resolved against you, the disputed amount goes back to the buyer on top of that fee, the way chargebacks work on every card network. Keeping disputes low matters more here than the fee: card networks monitor dispute rates per merchant, and a rate that stays high can cost you the account. The usual defences work — recognizable descriptors, instant delivery, a working support address, and clear product descriptions. See [Handling disputes](/merchants/payments/disputes). ## The fine print Shoppex Payments works through a **Merchant of Record** partner. For card payments only, that partner is the legal seller of the order: they process the payment, and the checkout page names them as the reseller and Merchant of Record for the transaction. What that means for you in practice: * **Shoppex never holds your money.** Payouts go from the processor to you directly. Shoppex is paid by the processor, not out of your balance. * **You still run your store.** Products, pricing, customers, delivery and support stay yours. * **The buyer's contract for that order is with the Merchant of Record.** They handle payment-related enquiries and act as the seller of record for card orders. Shoppex Payments is optional. Every other gateway — including your own Stripe account if you have one — keeps working unchanged, and you can turn cards off without losing your approval.