Understanding Virtual Bank Accounts

Virtual Bank Accounts (VBA) or Virtual Accounts are a special type of bank account that you can use to receive payments from your customers. Customers only need to make transfers from their preferred bank app into the virtual account assigned to them. Because this account is dedicated to a single customer, every payment made to that account will be associated with the customer.

How to create Virtual Bank Accounts

To create Virtual Bank Accounts, you would need to:

• Log in to your dashboard. Create an account if you don’t already have one.
• Send a request to our Create Virtual Bank Account API endpoint. View our API Documentation here for more information.

How to accept payments from customers through Virtual Bank Accounts

To accept payments from your customers through Virtual Accounts, you would need to create virtual accounts first. Once these accounts are created, your customers can make payments to them instantly. All your customers need to do is to make payment via their preferred means (Internet/Mobile Banking, USSD) into the account.

What happens after a customer makes payment to a Virtual account
Immediately your customer makes a payment into any of your virtual accounts, the transaction is recorded on the Pay-ins page of your dashboard. You'd also be notified of these transactions via webhooks and you would be able to verify the payment. This payment will reflect in your Kora balance based on your settlement configurations.

How to get the details of a Virtual Bank Account after it has been created
The details of every Virtual Bank Account can be found in the 'Virtual Accounts' section of the Merchant’s dashboard. All you need to do is:

• Log in to your dashboard.
• Navigate to the Virtual Accounts page.
• Search for the Virtual Bank Account using the Account Name, Account Number, or the Account Reference.

• Click on the account to view more details
  
  

Also, you can get these details by making a request to our API Endpoint. Kindly view our API Documentation to learn more.

How to know when a payment is made into a Virtual Bank Account

Since bank transfers are initiated outside the Kora application, you can only be notified after the transfer is complete. This notification happens through webhooks. When payment is made to the virtual account, Kora notifies you through your notification URL. As a result, you are required to set your webhook notification URL on your Kora dashboard. More details on setting up webhooks to receive payment notifications can be viewed on our API Documentation.

Also, whenever a payment is made to these accounts, you'll be notified via your business email (provided that you request to have this setting turned on). And all payments to Virtual Bank Accounts will be displayed on the Payins page of your Kora Dashboard.

How to view details of a payment to a Virtual Account

• Log in to your dashboard.
• Navigate to the Pay-ins page.
  
  
• Search for the transaction using the payment reference.
• Click on the transaction to view more details.
  

What are the fees charged for payments to the Virtual Bank Accounts?
The fees for payments to the Virtual Bank Accounts are charged per transaction. Kindly reach out to [e-mail] if you have more questions regarding fees.

Is there a minimum or maximum amount that can be paid to the Virtual Bank Account?
The minimum or maximum amount that can be paid into the Virtual Bank Account is subject to your customer's daily limit on their bank. 
For instance, if your customer has a daily limit of N500,000 on their bank app, this means that they cannot transfer more than N500,000 daily to any account including the Virtual Bank Account in a given day.

Can a payment made into a Virtual Bank Account be refunded?
Payments made to the virtual accounts can be refunded on the Kora dashboard using the steps below:

• Click on the transaction to be refunded
• On the top right, click on Refunds
• Select the refund type, input the reason, then click on 'Confirm Refund'

If you have any issues, do reach out to us at [e-mail]

How long is a Virtual Bank Account valid?
A Virtual Bank Account can remain valid indefinitely - these accounts do not expire. They can however be suspended or deleted.

How to suspend or delete a Virtual Bank Account
To suspend or delete a Virtual Bank Account, you would need to send an email to [e-mail] with the reason for suspension or deletion and details of the virtual account.

What are the supported/available banks for the Virtual Bank Account?
Currently, virtual bank accounts can be generated for the following banks:

• Wema Bank
• Globus Bank
• Optimus Bank
• Fidelity Bank

Once we have more bank options available, you will be able to select the bank of your choice to create a virtual account.