Before you can understand the process of a credit card transaction, it’s best first to familiarize yourself with the key players involved:

• Cardholder: Someone who owns and benefits from the use of a membership card, particularly a credit card.
• Merchant: The business or vendor sells goods or services to the cardholder. The merchant accepts credit and debit card payments. It also sends card information to and requests payment authorization from the cardholder’s issuing bank.
• Acquiring Processor/Service Provider: This third-party entity is responsible for receiving payment authorization requests from the merchant and sending them to the issuing bank through the appropriate channels. It then relays the issuing bank’s response to the merchant. Additionally, they participate in the funding of the merchant's bank account. 
  
• Issuing Bank/Credit Card Issuer: The financial institution issued the credit or debit card involved in the transaction. It receives the payment authorization request from the credit or debit card network and either approves or declines the transaction.
• Credit Card Network/Association Member: These entities operate the networks that process credit card payments worldwide and govern interchange fees. Examples of credit card networks are Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express. In the transaction process, a credit card network receives the credit card payment details from the acquiring processor. It forwards the payment authorization request to the issuing bank and sends the issuing bank’s response to the acquiring processor.