Spektrix Payments: Topping Up your Adyen Reserve Balance

When you process refunds on Spektrix Payments, this money is returned to the customer from the available funds ready for payout in your Adyen merchant account. If your merchant account doesn’t contain enough funds, the refund is deducted from your Adyen reserve balance.

In this article, we’ll explain how to top up your Adyen reserve balance.

Before you read this article, you should be familiar with:

• Setting up a Reserve in Spektrix Payments
• Failed Refunds in Spektrix Payments

How do I view my Reserve Balance?

Before you can view balances and manage your reserve, you’ll need the Merchant Financial Role on your Adyen User Account.

If you don’t have this role, ask a user with the Merchant User Management Role to add this to your user account. Read Creating and Managing Spektrix Payments User Accounts for more information.

Once you have the Merchant Financial Role, follow these steps: 

1. Log into your Essentials Dashboard

2. From the Home menu, look at the Reserve section:

   
   

Why do I need to top up my Reserve Balance?

When you issue a refund, the funds are deducted from the available funds ready for payout in your Adyen merchant account. If your merchant account doesn’t contain enough funds, the refund is deducted from your reserve if the funds are available. If your reserve doesn’t contain enough funds, the refund will fail.

You’ll need to check your Adyen reserve daily to ensure you have enough funds to cover any refunds. Ensuring your reserve balance is topped up means refunds will be taken from your reserve and will not fail due to an insufficient account balance.

For example, if at the start of the day your account balance is zero and you’ve taken a payment for $80 which hasn't yet settled. A customer then requests a refund for $100. Without the reserve balance, this refund would fail due to an insufficient account balance. 

How long does a top up take to clear?

A top up deposited into your reserve balance will clear within the following timescales:

• USD and EUR: Payments will be deposited within two business days
• GBP, CAD: Payments will be deposited within three business days

TIP: Transfers initiated outside of regular banking hours or on weekends may experience delays, as they are processed on the next business day.

How to top up your Reserve Balance

To top up your reserve balance, you’ll need to transfer funds to your Adyen reserve through a Bank Transfer or SEPA Transfer depending on your location.

• All regions: Using available funds awaiting payout
• UK and US: Bank Transfer
• Republic of Ireland: SEPA Bank Transfer
• Canada: Bank Transfer

Topping up a Reserve from available funds

You can top up your reserve from your available funds used for payouts. Once a reserve threshold has been set, a portion of your available funds is held back and allocated to your reserve balance until the target reserve amount has been reached.

For example, when setting up a $10,000 reserve, a portion of your available funds is transferred to the reserve instead of paid out. This process will continue until the reserve contains $10,000.

One the reserve threshold is met, payouts will continue as normal. To top up your reserve using available funds, contact Support.

Bank Transfers (Canada)

If you’re a Spektrix Payments user in Canada, you must top up your Adyen reserve by setting up a bank transfer with your own bank using Adyen’s details below.

Once you’ve transferred funds through your bank, contact Support with the top up details. This enables our Support team to check progress of the top up with Adyen.

WARNING: Do not initiate any top ups through the Essentials Dashboard. All top ups must be completed using a bank transfer initiated through your own bank.

REMINDER: Once you’ve transferred funds through your bank, contact Support with the top up details. This enables our Support team to check progress of the top up with Adyen.

Bank Transfers and SEPA Transfers 

To top up your reserve balance, you’ll need to transfer funds to your Adyen reserve through a Bank Transfer or SEPA Transfer.

Once you’ve transferred funds through your bank, contact Support with the top up details. This enables our Support team to check progress of the top up with Adyen.

Follow these steps to create a payment link or top up:

1. Log into your Adyen Essentials Dashboard

   
   

2. Click Control your balances:

   

   TIP: If any top up payments are pending, you’ll see these displayed.

3. Click Top up:

   
   

4. Enter the amount. The currency will default to your local currency:

   
   

5. Click the dropdown arrow next to Select a reason for top up. Choose Funding my refund reserve balance:

   
   

6. Click Open payment link:

   
   

   TIP: If you have an active pending top up, you won’t see the Open payment link. Instead, you’ll see a message displayed under the Reason field. To create a top up, click Continue to create top up offer.
   
   

Once you’ve clicked Open payment link, you’ll need to select the type of transfer depending on your location:

• UK and US: Bank Transfer
• Republic of Ireland: SEPA Bank Transfer

Click the tab below depending on your location and method of transfer.

• Bank Transfer: UK and US

  Bank Transfers are a secure method of transferring funds from one account to another. Depending on your bank, you can either set this up over the phone or online. You may be asked to complete authentication to confirm your identity.

  REMINDER: USD payments will be deposited within two business days. GBP payments will be deposited within three business days.
  
  Transfers initiated outside of regular banking hours or on weekends may experience delays, as they are processed on the next business day.

  To pay by bank transfer, follow these steps:

  1. Select Bank Transfer:

     
     

  2. Click Continue to Bank Transfer:

     
     

  3. You’ll see a Pay using Bank Transferscreen:

     
     
  You or your finance team will need to contact your bank to set up a bank transfer. Your bank will ask for the following:
  • Amount: The amount of your top up
  • With reference: The reference number generated in the Pay using Bank Transfer screen. This ensures the funds are transferred to your Adyen reserve.
    

    WARNING: Ensure you enter your reference number. Without a reference number Adyen won’t know which merchant account to allocate the funds to.

  • Beneficiary Name: Adyen N.V
  • Bank: The name of the bank you’re transferring funds to
  You’ll also need to provide:
  • Sort Code: The sort code of the account you're transferring funds to
  • Account Number: The account number you're transferring funds to
  Or
  • International Bank Account Number (IBAN): The internationally agreed code of the bank you're transferring funds to
  • Bank Identifier Code (BIC): Used to identify the bank, county, location and branch you're transferring funds to
  To receive these details by email, follow these steps:
  1. Send a copy of these details to my email address: Check this box.
  2. Email Address: Enter the email address you want to send the bank details to.
  3. Add a note to the email: You can add a note to the email to provide context. For example, if you’re sending the bank details to your finance team.

  TIP: When generating a top up or bank transfer link, we recommend entering the email address of the person responsible for completing the bank transfer. This should help improve clarity, ownership, and reduce follow-up queries.

  Alternatively, you can print the details by clicking print this page.
  
  Once you’ve transferred funds through your bank, contact Support with the top up details. This enables our Support team to check progress of the top up with Adyen.

• SEPA Bank Transfer: Republic of Ireland

  SEPA Bank Transfers are only available in countries part of the SEPA zone. For example, the Republic of Ireland.

  REMINDER: EUR payments will be deposited within two business days.
  
  Transfers initiated outside of regular banking hours or on weekends may experience delays, as they are processed on the next business day.

  To pay by SEPA Bank transfer, follow these steps:

  1. Select SEPA Bank Transfer::

     
     

  2. To receive the payment details by email, check the Send a copy to my email box. Enter your email address:

     
     

     TIP: When generating a top up or bank transfer link, we recommend entering the email address of the person responsible for completing the bank transfer. This should help improve clarity, ownership, and reduce follow-up queries.

  3. Click Continue to SEPA Bank Transfer:

     
     

  4. You’ll see the bank details to send the transfer to:

     
     
  You or your finance team will need to contact your bank to set up a bank transfer. Your bank will ask for the following:
  • Amount: The amount of the top up
  • Beneficiary: Adyen N.V
  • International Bank Account Number (IBAN): The internationally agreed code of the bank you're transferring funds to
  • Bank Identifier Code (BIC): Used to identify the bank, county, location and branch you're transferring funds to
  • Reference: The reference from the bank details screen. This ensures the funds are transferred to your Adyen reserve.

  WARNING: Ensure you enter your reference number. Without the reference number Adyen won’t know which merchant account to allocate the funds to.

  REMINDER: Once you’ve transferred funds through your bank, contact Support with the top up details. This enables our Support team to check progress of the top up with Adyen.

How to view the Top Up in Adyen Reports

Once a top up has cleared into your Adyen Reserve, you’ll see the transaction in the Settlement Details Report in your Essentials Dashboard:

The top up will be displayed in the Type column as ‘ReserveAdjustment’:

When reconciling payments in your Settlement Details Report, you’ll need to reconcile for the day the funds are reflected in the reserve and not the day the funds were sent.