Requested Payment Currency
Pronunciation: ree-KWES-tid PAY-muhnt KUR-un-see
Definition
Requested Payment Currency is the fiat currency, coin, token, or unit in which the merchant expresses the amount due in the payment request.
Overview
How it works and why it matters
Requested payment currency is the unit the merchant specifies when creating an obligation or payment request. It can be a fiat pricing currency such as USD or a particular cryptocurrency. The request is not always the unit ultimately received: a gateway may convert a dollar-denominated invoice into an allowed token at checkout. Systems should store the requested unit separately from accepted asset, original price, quoted token amount and settlement currency.
Practical checks
Keep the requested denomination fixed in the original invoice record, even if the customer views a localized price or converts at checkout. Reporting should show both the original list price and the applied conversion rate. Currency codes must be explicit: a token ticker is not a complete chain-specific asset identifier.
Related concepts
Received Payment Currency; Payment Amount Conversion; Payment Quote
Example
A merchant prices a subscription at EUR 25 but permits a customer to pay in USDC. EUR is the requested pricing unit; USDC is the transfer asset. A stored quote documents how much USDC satisfies the EUR obligation at the time.
Comparison
Requested currency is not necessarily the received currency or the merchant's payout currency. Confusing these can distort exchange-rate accounting and refund calculations.
Key Takeaway
Preserve the original invoice denomination even when the customer pays with another asset.
Sources
- Generate Invoice — OxaPay (2026-08-02)
- Accepted Currencies — OxaPay (2026-08-02)
- Payment Processing — Bitcoin Developer Guide (2026-08-02)