What it means
Define what is owed
The sale may be priced in fiat while the requested payment is in a particular cryptoasset. The parties need an amount, asset, network and validity period, plus rules for late, partial or excess payments.
Define what counts as paid
Transaction detection, network acceptance and merchant settlement are separate stages. A provider may offer custody or conversion, while a direct wallet flow leaves different responsibilities with the merchant. Refund handling and accounting must be designed explicitly rather than inferred from the original transfer.
Related concepts
Payment gateway, Transaction finality, Payment settlement, Refund.
In practice
A concrete example
A store issues a time-limited request for a named token on a named network and keeps the order pending until its acceptance rules are met.
Technical notes & boundaries
Crypto payments are not universally instant, anonymous, cheaper or free of disputes. A network transfer does not itself establish completion of a bank payout.
Go to the source.
Original references used for this definition. Product details and standards can change.
