Merchant-Locked Card

{ "@graph": [ { "@type": "DefinedTerm", "@id": "https://www.opalspend.com/glossary/merchant-locked-card#term", "name": "Merchant-Locked Card", "description": "A merchant-locked card is a virtual card restricted to a single approved merchant. The first transaction, or a rule set at issue, ties the card to that merchant, and any charge attempted anywhere else is declined at authorisation. The card number keeps working for its intended vendor indefinitely, which makes it suitable for recurring spend, while remaining useless to anyone who obtains the number and tries to spend it somewhere else.", "url": "https://www.opalspend.com/glossary/merchant-locked-card", "inDefinedTermSet": { "@type": "DefinedTermSet", "@id": "https://www.opalspend.com/glossary", "name": "Opal Glossary", "url": "https://www.opalspend.com/glossary" }, "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Opal", "url": "https://www.opalspend.com" }, "datePublished": "2026-08-27", "dateModified": "2026-08-27" }, { "@type": "FAQPage", "mainEntity": [ { "@type": "Question", "name": "What happens if a merchant-locked card is used elsewhere?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "The transaction is declined at authorisation. The charge never posts, so there is nothing to dispute or reverse." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Can a merchant-locked card be used for recurring payments?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Yes. The lock restricts which merchant can charge the card, not how often. That makes locked cards a good fit for ad platform billing, which charges repeatedly against the same payment method." } }, { "@type": "Question", "name": "Is a merchant-locked card the same as a single-use card?", "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "No. A merchant-locked card can be charged many times by one merchant. A single-use card expires after one transaction regardless of who charged it." } } ] } ] }