{"templateId":"markdown","sharedDataIds":{"sidebar":"sidebar-docs/sidebars.yaml"},"props":{"metadata":{"markdoc":{"tagList":["site-link"]},"type":"markdown"},"seo":{"title":"Platform","meta":[{"name":"robots","content":"noindex, nofollow"},{"name":"pingdom","content":"sh3MDv8mJpWhCWSTdGtN"}]},"dynamicMarkdocComponents":[],"compilationErrors":[],"ast":{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"article","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"Heading","attributes":{"level":1,"id":"platform","__idx":0},"children":["Platform"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["Platform turns your account into a hub for multi-party payment flows: connect merchant accounts under your platform and manage payouts on their behalf. It's the model marketplaces, SaaS platforms, crowdfunding services, ISOs (Independent Sales Organizations), and PSPs (Payment Service Providers) use to manage payments for the businesses they serve."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["Before connecting real merchants, you can build and validate the entire structure in a sandbox — with no limit on the number of test merchant accounts and no risk to live operations."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["What you can do:"]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"ul","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"li","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Structure your platform"]},": connect and manage multiple merchant accounts under a single Platform account"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"li","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Monitor transaction volume"]}," across all connected merchants in one place, in both sandbox and live environments"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"li","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Validate your integration risk-free"]}," using unlimited sandbox merchant accounts before onboarding real merchants"]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"Heading","attributes":{"level":2,"id":"how-it-fits-with-onboarding","__idx":1},"children":["How it fits with onboarding"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["You can transform your account into a Platform and start building your integration immediately using sandbox merchant accounts — no need to wait for merchant onboarding. 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Once a merchant is successfully onboarded, a new merchant account is created under your Platform in Live mode, and production API keys become available for that merchant."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["Your sandbox merchant accounts and test API keys remain active after go-live, so you can keep validating new flows or platform changes alongside your production environment."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"Heading","attributes":{"level":2,"id":"getting-started","__idx":2},"children":["Getting Started"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["Follow the steps below to start:"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Step 1: Create an account"]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"SiteLink","attributes":{"href":"/signup"},"children":["Sign up"]}," at dev.shift4.com."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["You can transform an existing account into a Platform by clicking the ",{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Become a Platform"]}," button, visible when you open the user menu."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"img","attributes":{"src":"/assets/become-platform.4c634161cdba817419c29df8e82e7efedf920f6f57f5d5eee0a1697e485f13df.171a32e3.png","alt":"User menu with Become a platform option highlighted"},"children":[]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"img","attributes":{"src":"/assets/dialog.762f4669855ac783933d670712863b234abf1d1ad958ff7baa01541fec7c484e.171a32e3.png","alt":"Become a platform confirmation modal"},"children":[]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Step 2: Add sandbox merchant accounts"]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["Once your account is set up as a Platform, you can add sandbox merchant accounts directly from your Dashboard — no need to contact support. Create as many as you need to simulate your platform structure and test your integration end to end."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"img","attributes":{"src":"/assets/add-merchant-empty.d03204f86c494c5a877163d8ce4f79240e024f9710da14d24e1d1551740c486b.171a32e3.png","alt":"Merchant accounts section in the Dashboard"},"children":[]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"img","attributes":{"src":"/assets/add-merchant.3f6ef78b131a4b9c572702c3d459620e4f674b10b77683c374abbaab738b4d33.171a32e3.png","alt":"Adding a new sandbox merchant account"},"children":[]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Step 3: Contact us"]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["Reach out to us at ",{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"MarkdownLink","attributes":{"href":"mailto:devsupport@shift4.com"},"children":["devsupport@shift4.com"]}," if you'd like to start using this feature. 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Visit our GitHub and documentation for guidance during the implementation process."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Step 6: Go live"]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["Replace your test API keys with live keys, and you'll be ready to start processing real transactions."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"Heading","attributes":{"level":2,"id":"managing-your-business","__idx":3},"children":["Managing your business"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"Heading","attributes":{"level":3,"id":"viewing-your-dashboard-vs-a-merchants-dashboard","__idx":4},"children":["Viewing your Dashboard vs. a merchant's Dashboard"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["As a platform account, you manage your own payments and data directly. By default, the Dashboard displays your own account's information."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["To view a connected merchant's data, you have two options:"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"ul","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"li","attributes":{},"children":["Go to the merchant's details page for a quick overview, or"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"li","attributes":{},"children":["Switch perspective to view the full Dashboard as that merchant would see it"]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["To switch perspective, click the ",{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["⋯"]}," (more options) menu next to a merchant in your merchant list and select \"View Dashboard as merchant.\""]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"img","attributes":{"src":"/assets/list.ce749551f8992d490cce762bf1ab136cd45efaa46e242fe829511441b2c8b126.171a32e3.png","alt":"Merchant list with the more options menu open"},"children":[]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["You can also access this option directly from the merchant's details page."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"img","attributes":{"src":"/assets/merchant-details.92b1df697a10947a7396a8734309701b29a64faa25b52add1c1bc17cb3446c27.171a32e3.png","alt":"The Dashboard in the context of a connected merchant, with a banner naming the merchant and its mrc_ identifier above the View dashboard as merchant button, a Merchant overview showing gross volume, and a Recent charges table"},"children":[]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["Once you switch perspective, a banner appears at the top of the Dashboard identifying the merchant you're viewing. To return to your own account, click ",{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Exit merchant view"]}," in the banner."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"img","attributes":{"src":"/assets/inspection.22bd670507e48b82bb57aa4accd4ab80b6be39367aab40d5480251aa16e99fd6.171a32e3.png","alt":"Merchant details page with the View Dashboard as merchant button"},"children":[]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Permissions carry over automatically"]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["When viewing the Dashboard from a merchant's perspective, your existing user permissions still apply:"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"ul","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"li","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Administrators"]}," can create and manage objects on the merchant's behalf."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"li","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"strong","attributes":{},"children":["Read-only users"]}," can view the merchant's data but cannot make changes."]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["This means you don't need to set up separate permissions for merchant-level access — your team's existing roles determine what they can do, whether they're working in your account or viewing a merchant's."]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"Heading","attributes":{"level":2,"id":"making-api-requests-on-behalf-of-your-merchants","__idx":5},"children":["Making API Requests on Behalf of your Merchants"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["You can use the API to perform actions in different contexts:"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"ul","attributes":{},"children":[{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"li","attributes":{},"children":["Your platform account"]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"li","attributes":{},"children":["Any merchant account connected to your platform"]}]},{"$$mdtype":"Tag","name":"p","attributes":{},"children":["When sending a request on behalf of a merchant, you must include the merchant ID along with your API key. 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