PADRate

PADRate is a metric used in the field of electronic payments to quantify the throughput and reliability of processing pre-authorized debit (PAD) transactions. It indicates how effectively a PAD workflow completes transactions within a specified period.

PADRate is typically expressed as a percentage, computed as (completed PAD transactions / attempted PAD transactions) × 100 during a defined time window. Some implementations break it down by channel (online, in-store), by region, or by processor.

Financial institutions, payment processors, and merchants use PADRate to monitor performance, meet service level agreements, plan capacity, and detect anomalies. It is commonly tracked alongside related metrics such as latency, authorization success rate, and batch settlement times.

PADRate can be affected by authorization network availability, gateway reliability, fraud checks, and retry policies. Differences in cut-off times, settlement windows, and regional rules can also influence the rate.

As a single metric, PADRate does not capture all aspects of payment quality; a high rate with long latency or high rejection rates can be misleading. It should be interpreted with other metrics for a complete view of performance.

The term PADRate arose in discussions of PAD-based payments and is used variably across providers; no universal standard exists, and definitions may differ between systems and regions.