Is AUS Merchant Services a card processor a U.S. shop can sign up with?
Summary
Not in the way Square or Stripe is. AUS Merchant Services, a subsidiary of Ant Group once known as Alipay US, shows up behind Zyla, a multi-currency account and transfer service for American businesses, and behind a checkout used by American merchants on partner platforms, and it publishes no card rate for storefront processing. On July 1, 2026, the Justice Department announced a $600 million non-prosecution agreement with Alibaba Group and AUS.
Who AUS is
The Justice Department describes AUS Merchant Services Inc. as a U.S.-based payment processor, "formerly known as Alipay US," and a subsidiary of Ant Group, which operates Alipay. In the same release, the IRS Criminal Investigation chief's statement calls it "a U.S.-licensed money services business." Zyla's footer adds that AUS holds state money transmission licenses and shows NMLS ID 1277102.
Zyla
Zyla is labeled "a service of AUS Merchant Services, Inc." It is a business account for U.S. companies that holds 10 or more currencies in separate balances and collects sales from more than 100 marketplaces, Amazon and AliExpress among them. Its pricing page lists:
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Opening the account, monthly fee, minimum balance | Free, none, none |
| Payment to a U.S. bank account | From $1 per transaction |
| Payment to another Zyla account | $0 |
| Currency conversion | Up to 0.75% |
| Marketplace collections and holding foreign balances | $0 |
The account is for business use only and is not offered for personal or household purposes. It is unavailable in New York and Nevada and limited to certain business types in Virginia. There is no card acceptance rate on the page.
Antom checkout
Antom is a brand of Ant International that sells payment and checkout services to merchants. A general disclaimer for AUS in Antom's documentation, last updated November 30, 2023, says AUS's merchant services are offered exclusively to U.S. merchants as an integrated checkout on partner platforms. It states that AUS "is not a bank," is not a trustee or escrow for the payer's funds, and acts as a payment processor that moves money from the buyer to the merchant. The disclaimer quotes no fees.
The July 1, 2026 Justice Department announcement
The department announced that Alibaba Group and AUS entered a non-prosecution agreement to pay $600 million to resolve its allegations that they violated the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act by failing to prevent merchants from selling and importing illegal pharmaceuticals, controlled substances, listed chemicals, and pill presses into the United States through Alibaba.com and AliExpress.com.
| Criminal monetary penalty | Forfeiture | |
|---|---|---|
| AUS Merchant Services | $85 million | $190 million |
| Alibaba Group | $125 million | $200 million |
According to the release, AUS admitted that from January 2020 through December 2023 it accepted U.S. dollar payments by credit card and by wire transfers routed through U.S. bank accounts, then moved the funds offshore for settlement, and that its anti-money laundering program failed to stop some Alibaba merchants from using its processing and settlement services for prohibited products. The Civil and Criminal Divisions and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Rhode Island handled the case, and both companies agreed to strengthen their compliance programs and keep cooperating with the department.
Sources
- justice.gov/opa/pr/alibaba-group-and-aus-merchant-services-agree-pay-6…
- zyla.com/about-zyla
- zyla.com/home
- zyla.com/pricing
- docs.antom.com/ac/Platform/qhns4axo
- antom.com
Related on this site
- What does it cost you when a customer pays with a card from another country?
- Who is the acquirer in a card payment, and how is it different from the card issuer?
- Every provider we hold, and which publish a rate
Written by Kaz (pen name). Figures are copied from providers' published pricing pages on the dates shown. We have not used these products. Corrections: contact form.