What does a merchant service provider (MSP) do?

A merchant service provider (MSP) plays a crucial role in facilitating payment processing for businesses, effectively acting as an intermediary between merchants and payment networks. The primary function of an MSP is to provide transaction processing solutions that allow merchants to accept a variety of payment methods, including credit and debit cards, electronic checks, and mobile payments.

This includes setting up payment gateways, managing payment transactions securely, and handling the associated data, ensuring compliance with industry standards like the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). By offering these services, MSPs enable merchants to efficiently process customer transactions, track sales, and manage their finances, thereby supporting the overall operation of the business.

The other choices, while related to aspects of payment processing, do not accurately capture the full scope of services provided by an MSP. For instance, selling credit and debit cards pertains more to card issuers, while an acquiring bank refers specifically to institutions that facilitate the processing of credit and debit card payments but does not encompass the broader transactional support and services that an MSP provides.