UnionPally Member Payment Collection Guide

A Guide to Automated Bank Transfer Payments for Associations and Members

What Is Member Payment Collection?

Member Payment Collection is a feature that allows association members to pay their levies by making a direct bank transfer — at any time, from any bank app — and have the system automatically record and match their payment without any manual work from admins.

Instead of an admin having to log every payment by hand, UnionPally connects to virtual bank accounts (called Reserved Accounts) provided by Monnify. When a member transfers money to one of these accounts, the system detects the transfer, identifies who paid, matches it to their outstanding levy, and records the payment automatically.

Why This Matters

• Members can pay at any time, even outside working hours
• Admins no longer need to manually enter every bank transfer
• Payments are matched and recorded within seconds of the transfer arriving
• The full payment history and audit trail is preserved automatically

Key Concepts

Before diving in, here are a few terms used throughout this guide:

Feature Overview

PART 1: FOR ASSOCIATION ADMINS

Enabling Automated Collection

Before members can use bank transfer payments, an admin must turn on the feature for the association.

Step 1: Go to Association Settings

1. Log into your UnionPally account
2. Select your association
3. Go to the "Settings" section
4. Look for the "Payment Settings" or "Collection Settings" area

Step 2: Enable Reserved Account Collection

Find the setting labelled "Enable reserved account collection" and switch it on.

Before you can save, you must also choose who pays the transaction fees (see below).

Step 3: Choose Who Pays the Fees

Every bank transfer processed through this system carries a small processing fee (charged by the payment provider). You must decide who absorbs this fee:

This setting affects every member payment made through the reserved accounts, so choose carefully.

Step 4: Save

Click "Save". The system will automatically:

1. Create the association's shared collection account (Association Reserved Account) with Monnify
2. Create the association's internal collection wallet
3. Display the new collection account details on the settings page

You will see a confirmation message and the account details will appear on screen.

What the Association's Collection Account Looks Like

Once enabled, a "Collection Account" card is displayed on your settings page:

Bank:           [Bank Name]
Account Number: [Virtual Account Number]  [Copy]
Account Name:   [Association Name]
Status:         Active

This is the account number members can use if they do not have their own personal virtual account.

Disabling the Feature

To turn off reserved account collection, switch the toggle off and save. The collection account will be deactivated. Existing payment records are not affected.

Setting Up Member Payment Accounts

For the best experience, each member should have their own personal virtual account. This way, any transfer to their account is automatically matched without needing a payment code in the narration.

Setting Up a Single Member's Account

This can be done by the member themselves or by an admin on their behalf.

What You Need

Step-by-Step

1. Go to the Member Detail page for the member
2. If the member does not yet have a payment account set up, you will see a "Set Up Payment Account" button
3. Click the button to open the setup form
4. Fill in the details:

BVN:                  [11-digit BVN]
Bank Account Number:  [10-digit account number]
Bank:                 [Search and select the bank]
PIN:                  [Your security PIN]

5. Click "Submit"

The system will verify the BVN against the provided bank account. If everything checks out, the virtual account is created and its details are displayed immediately.

Member Payment Account Card

After setup, the member's page shows their personal virtual account:

Bank:           [Bank Name]
Account Number: [Virtual Account Number]  [Copy]
Account Name:   [Member's Name]
Status:         Active

Use this account number when making levy payments by bank transfer.

Possible Errors During Setup

Bulk Setup of Member Payment Accounts

If you need to set up payment accounts for many members at once, use the bulk setup feature instead of doing them one by one.

Entry Point

Find the "Bulk Set Up Payment Accounts" button on the Members list page or the Payments page (admin view).

What the Bulk Form Looks Like

The form shows a table with one row per member. For each row, you enter:

Member:         [Pre-filled from your selection]
BVN:            [Member's 11-digit BVN]
Account Number: [Member's 10-digit bank account number]
Bank:           [Select the bank]

There is a single PIN field at the bottom of the form that applies to the whole batch.

You can also import member data from a CSV file to populate the rows quickly.

After Submitting

The system processes the accounts in the background. You will see:

"Bulk provisioning queued for X member(s). Track progress in the background jobs section."

A link is provided to the Background Job page where you can monitor progress. See Part 3 of this guide for details.

Viewing All Member Payment Accounts

To see a list of all virtual accounts created for your association:

1. Go to the association's payment or member settings area
2. Look for the "Member Payment Accounts" table

The table shows:

Use the "Active only" filter to hide inactive accounts.

PART 2: FOR MEMBERS

Finding Your Payment Code

Every member has a unique Payment Code (also called a Short ID or sid). This is a 12-character code shown on your member profile.

You will need this code when paying into the association's shared account (Method B below). It tells the system which member made the transfer.

Your Payment Code is displayed on your member profile. You can copy it with one click.

You can also use your association-linked phone number in place of your payment code when making narrations.

Two Ways to Pay by Bank Transfer

Method A: Pay via Your Personal Virtual Account (Recommended)

If your admin has set up a personal virtual account for you, use this method. It is the easiest and most reliable option because your transfer is automatically identified — no code needed in the narration.

How to Pay:

1. Open your member profile on UnionPally
2. Find your personal payment account card:

Bank:           [Bank Name]
Account Number: [Your Virtual Account Number]
Account Name:   [Your Name]

3. Copy your account number
4. Open your bank app or visit your bank
5. Make a transfer to this account number, for the amount you want to pay

That is all. The system receives the transfer and matches it to your account within seconds.

Important — If the Association Pays Fees: Transfer the exact amount of the levy you want to settle.

Important — If You (the Member) Pay Fees: The amount you transfer must be slightly higher than your levy amount, because the processing fee is deducted from what you send. Use the Fee Preview tool (see below) to find out exactly how much to transfer.

Method B: Pay via the Association's Shared Account

If you do not yet have a personal virtual account, you can still pay using the association's single shared account.

How to Pay:

1. Get the association's collection account details from your admin or from the association settings page:

Bank:           [Bank Name]
Account Number: [Association's Virtual Account Number]
Account Name:   [Association's Name]

2. Copy the account number
3. Open your bank app or visit your bank
4. Make the transfer, and in the narration/description/remark field, enter your Payment Code (or your association-linked phone number)

Example narration: A1B2C3D4E5F6 or 08012345678

5. Complete the transfer

This step is critical. If you do not include your payment code or phone number in the narration, the system cannot identify you and your payment will be flagged for manual review. This means your levy balance will not be updated automatically.

Using the Fee Preview Tool

Before making a transfer, you can check exactly how much to send.

The Fee Preview tool is shown automatically when a transfer payment method is selected while creating a payment, or it can be accessed directly.

Enter the amount you want to settle (or the amount you intend to transfer), and the tool shows:

Base Amount:        ₦5,000.00
Monnify Fee:            ₦52.50
UnionPally Fee:         ₦25.00
Total Fees:             ₦77.50
Amount to Transfer: ₦5,077.50   ← Transfer exactly this amount
Fee Bearer:         Member

If the association absorbs fees: The "Amount to Transfer" equals the base amount you want to settle.

If you (the member) absorb fees: The "Amount to Transfer" is higher than the base amount. Transfer exactly the stated amount to ensure your levy is fully settled.

How the System Matches Your Transfer

When your transfer arrives, the system follows these steps to decide what to do with it:

Step 1 — Identify you

• If you paid into your personal virtual account: you are identified automatically.
• If you paid into the association account: the system reads your payment code from the narration.

Step 2 — Check if a payment is already waiting If you (or an admin) had already created a pending payment record for this exact amount using the bank transfer method, the system confirms that payment and marks it as paid.

Step 3 — Check if the amount matches your full outstanding debt If the transfer amount matches your total outstanding balance, the system creates a new payment and confirms it immediately.

Step 4 — Credit your wallet If neither of the above matches, the transferred amount is added to your wallet balance for later use.

In all cases, you receive a notification explaining what was done.

Your Member Wallet

What Is the Wallet?

Your wallet is an internal UnionPally balance that holds money credited to you. Funds enter your wallet when:

• A bank transfer could not be matched to a specific levy (Step 4 above)
• An admin manually adds funds to your wallet

Wallet funds can then be applied toward any outstanding levy payment.

Viewing Your Wallet

Go to the "Wallet" tab on your Member Detail page.

Your wallet summary shows:

Wallet Transaction History

Your wallet page also shows two histories:

Deposits — Money added to your wallet:

Withdrawals — Money used from your wallet:

Paying a Levy Using Your Wallet Balance

If you have funds in your wallet, you can use them to settle an outstanding levy directly — no bank transfer needed.

When creating or recording a payment, select "Member Wallet" as the payment method.

Before confirming, the system shows your current wallet balance. If your balance is not enough to cover the payment amount, you will see an error:

"Insufficient wallet balance. Current balance: ₦X,XXX.XX."

If your balance is sufficient, the payment is confirmed immediately — there is no separate confirmation step. The levy is marked as paid and a withdrawal record is added to your wallet history.

PART 3: TRACKING AND ADMINISTRATION

Payment References and Short IDs

Every payment now has a Payment Reference (also called sid or Short ID). This is a 12-character code that appears on:

• Payment cards and rows in lists
• Payment detail pages
• Receipts and notifications

Use this reference when discussing a specific payment with your admin or support team.

Payments made through reserved accounts also show a Transaction Reference — the unique identifier from the bank transfer itself. This appears on the payment detail page when the payment was auto-matched from a transfer.

Payment Status Badges

Payments in lists and detail views now show status badges to help you quickly understand what happened:

Reversing a Confirmed Payment

Admins and payment confirmers can reverse a confirmed payment that was funded through a virtual account transfer.

When Can a Payment Be Reversed?

A payment can be reversed only when all of the following are true:

• The payment has been confirmed
• The payment has not already been reversed
• The payment is not itself a reversal record
• The payment has a linked wallet deposit (i.e. it was funded through a Monnify transfer or the member's wallet)

How to Reverse

1. Open the Payment Detail page
2. Click the "Reverse Payment" button (visible only when the above conditions are met)
3. A confirmation dialog appears:

Reverse this payment? This will debit the association's wallet by ₦{amount} and credit it back to the member's wallet. Enter your PIN to confirm.

4. Enter your PIN and confirm

After Reversal

• The original payment is marked as reversed
• A new reversal record is created and linked to the original payment
• The amount is returned to the member's wallet
• Both records are visible on the payment history page

Errors You May See

Monitoring Background Jobs

When you submit a bulk member account setup, the system processes everything in the background. You do not need to wait on the page — the work happens automatically.

Viewing a Background Job

Go to the Background Jobs section (or follow the link shown after bulk submission).

The job detail page shows:

A progress bar shows how far along the job is.

Job Statuses

The page stops refreshing automatically once the job reaches a final state.

Association Collection Wallet

When reserved account collection is enabled, the association has an internal Collection Wallet that tracks all inbound payment activity.

Viewing the Association Wallet

Go to the association's finance dashboard or payment settings page. Look for the "Collection Wallet" card.

From this card, you can also view the full deposit and withdrawal history for the collection wallet.

Access Control Summary

Frequently Asked Questions

What if I forget to include my payment code in the narration?

Your payment will be held for manual review. An admin will need to match it to your account manually. To avoid delays, always include your payment code or association-linked phone number in the narration when paying into the association's shared account.

Can I have a personal virtual account in more than one association?

Yes. If you are a member of multiple associations, each association can set up a separate virtual account for you. The accounts are independent.

What if I overpay or my transfer does not match any levy?

The excess amount is added to your wallet. You can then use your wallet balance to settle future levy payments.

What happens if I transfer money and nothing shows up on my account?

First check the payment history on your member page. If the transfer has arrived, it will show either as a confirmed payment or a wallet deposit. If nothing appears after a few minutes, contact your association admin — the transfer may need manual review.

If the association absorbs the fee, does that cost the association money?

Yes. The transaction fee is deducted from the amount before it reaches the association's collection wallet. The member's levy is credited in full, but the association receives slightly less than the transferred amount.

Can a payment made by wallet be reversed?

Yes, if the payment was made using the member wallet method and all the standard reversal conditions are met. The amount is returned to the member's wallet.

What is the difference between "Available Balance" and "Ledger Balance" in the wallet?

The ledger balance is the full recorded total. The available balance is the portion you can actually use right now. In most cases they will be the same, but they may differ when transactions are being processed.