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Understanding and Managing Pending Transactions in Your Bankful Portal

Pending transactions occur when a payment cannot be automatically finalized and requires your review. This typically happens when a transaction triggers a soft decline or review condition (for example: verification checks or processor responses that require merchant confirmation).

The Pending Transactions feature allows you to review these transactions and decide whether to approve the payment and allow it to process, or decline it.

What Is a Pending Transaction?

A pending transaction is a payment that has been temporarily placed on hold and requires a merchant decision before it can be completed.

This process ensures that you maintain control over transactions that may require additional review.

Common reasons a transaction may be placed in pending status include:

  • Address Verification (AVS) mismatch
  • CVV verification failure
  • Other processor responses requiring merchant confirmation

The reason a transaction was placed in pending status will always be visible within the Pending Transactions list.

How You Are Notified of Pending Transactions

Merchants are notified in multiple ways when a transaction requires review.

Email Notification

You will receive an email alert notifying you that a transaction requires action. The email will include:

  • A link to log in to your Bankful Merchant Portal
  • A link to this knowledge base article for guidance

Portal Notification

When you log in to your Bankful Merchant Portal, you will see:

  • A pop-up notification informing you that there are pending transactions requiring review
  • A Review Transactions button to take you directly to the pending transaction list
  • A notification counter displayed on the Transactions menu in the left sidebar

You may close the pop-up if you prefer to review the transactions later.

How to Access Pending Transactions

To access your pending transactions:

  • Log in to your Bankful Merchant Portal
  • Click Transactions in the left sidebar
  • Select Pending Transactions

This will display a list of all transactions currently awaiting your review.

Downloading Pending Transactions

If you need a record of pending transactions for reporting or reconciliation purposes, you can download them.

To download the list:

  • Navigate to the Pending Transactions page
  • Click Download CSV in the upper-right corner of the list

The CSV file will include:

  • Transaction ID
  • Customer information
  • Transaction amount
  • Date and time
  • Reason for pending status
  • Other transaction details

Reviewing and Actioning Pending Transactions

You can review and make decisions on transactions in two ways.

Bulk Approve or Decline Transactions

If you want to handle multiple transactions at once:

  • Select the checkbox at the top for all transactions listed OR the checkbox next to the transactions you want to review
  • Choose Approve or Decline from the bulk action options
  • Confirm your selection when prompted

This allows you to quickly process several transactions at once.

Review and Decide on Individual Transactions

If you prefer to review transactions one at a time:

  • Click the plus sign beside a transaction in the list to expand its details
  • Review the transaction information and the reason it was placed in pending status
  • Select Approve or Decline from the available options

This method is useful if you need to evaluate each transaction individually.

Confirming Your Decision

After selecting Approve or Decline, a confirmation pop-up will appear asking you to verify your decision.

⚠️ Important ⚠️

Once a transaction is approved or declined, the action cannot be undone.

Please review the transaction details carefully before confirming.

What Happens After a Transaction Is Actioned?

Once a transaction has been approved or declined:

  • It is removed from the Pending Transactions list
  • It is moved to your Completed Transactions list
  • The transaction will appear alongside your other processed transactions for reporting and reconciliation

Best Practices for Managing Pending Transactions

  • Review pending transactions promptly to avoid delays in order fulfillment
  • Use bulk actions when handling high transaction volumes
  • Use individual review for transactions that require closer inspection
  • Download the CSV report if you need an audit record of pending activity

If you continue to experience issues or have questions about pending transactions, please contact Bankful Merchant Support for assistance.

03.10.2026