Rolling Reserve

A percentage of processed volume withheld by the acquirer for months as a chargeback buffer — standard tax on high-risk processing.

Rolling reserves hold back 5–15% of card volume for 90–180 days, cushioning the acquirer against dispute and insolvency exposure before releasing on schedule.

Cash-flow arithmetic

A 10%/180-day reserve on €2M monthly card volume permanently traps ~€1.2M of working capital — a financing cost that belongs in every payments-cost model next to fees and FX. Reserves negotiate down with history and licensing tier, and reserve terms (percentage, period, release mechanics, insolvency treatment) deserve the same scrutiny as headline rates when selecting acquirers.