Job Spec For :

Cards Acquiring QA Engineer

Cards Issuing QA Engineer

Cards Acquiring QA Engineer: The Technical Breakdown

A Cards Acquiring QA Engineer ensures the quality, performance, and compliance of systems
enabling merchants to accept card payments through POS terminals, payment gateways, and
e-commerce platforms. This role is deeply technical, requiring a strong foundation in payment
systems, testing methodologies, and compliance standards. Banking experience is essential
to this role, and candidates must have hands-on knowledge of financial systems, transaction
lifecycles, and regulatory requirements. Applicants must be in South African.

*WORK FROM OFFICE ROLE IN JHB*

Core Responsibilities

Requirement Analysis
Collaborate with product owners, business analysts, and engineering teams to dissect and
understand:

 Card acquiring flows (authorization, clearing, settlement).

 Payment gateway integrations (e.g., WorldPay, Stripe, Adyen).

 Transaction edge cases (declines, reversals, retries).

 Banking systems for clearing, settlement, and reconciliation processes.

Test Planning and Strategy

Develop end-to-end test plans encompassing:

 Functional testing for core features like transaction approvals, refunds, and
chargebacks.

 Non-functional testing for high-volume transactions and low-latency responses.

 Regression suites for ISO 8583, banking APIs, and payment gateways.
Define key scenarios for tokenized payments, cryptographic signatures, multi-currency
support, and banking integrations.

Functional Testing
Simulate card-present (EMV, NFC) and card-not-present (CNP) transactions.
Validate transaction flows across:

 POS terminals using simulators and hardware integration tools.

 Banking systems for settlement and transaction finalization.

 E-commerce checkout processes with real-world scenarios.

Verify real-time fraud detection mechanisms and risk scoring models.
Integration Testing
Test APIs and middleware components:

 Payment Gateway APIs (REST/GraphQL/ISO 8583 messaging).

 Switch-to-Host communications for authorization requests/responses.

 Banking system interfaces for clearing, reconciliation, and reporting.

Conduct mock simulations with card network test environments (Visa, Mastercard,
Amex).

Performance and Load Testing

Benchmark TPS (Transactions Per Second) and validate system capacity during peak loads
using tools like:

 JMeter or Gatling for large transaction volumes.

 Akamai Tra ic Simulator for distributed network load.

Ensure system uptime and response times meet 99.999% availability (five-nines) SLA.

Security and Compliance Testing

Validate adherence to PCI-DSS Level 1 compliance:

 Encryption standards for sensitive cardholder data (AES, RSA).

 Tokenization mechanisms for PANs (Primary Account Numbers).

Conduct penetration testing to detect vulnerabilities in payment systems.
Verify EMV Level 3 certification for hardware devices.
Ensure compliance with banking regulations such as Basel III, POPIA (South Africa),
and other global standards.

Automation Framework Design

Architect and implement robust automation frameworks from scratch:

 Serenity BDD with Java for end-to-end workflows.

 Cucumber Gherkin for clear, behavior-driven scenarios.

 Postman for API validations with automated test suites.

Integrate frameworks with CI/CD pipelines in tools like:

 Jenkins, GitHub Actions, or Azure DevOps.

Deploy pipelines to execute daily regression suites and smoke tests.

Defect Management and Reporting

Use tools like JIRA and TestRail to log and track bugs with detailed:

 Reproduction steps.

 System logs and traces (API/DB/Network-level debugging).

Implement root cause analysis (RCA) and collaborate on resolutions with DevOps
teams.
User Acceptance Testing (UAT)
Partner with stakeholders to define UAT entry/exit criteria.
Test real-world payment scenarios, including:

 Dynamic currency conversion (DCC).

 Merchant onboarding workflows for card acquiring.

Essential Tools & Technologies

Programming & Frameworks

 Proficiency in Java, Python, or C# for scripting automated tests.

 Expertise with Selenium, Cypress, and Playwright for UI automation.

 Strong grasp of API testing tools (Postman, RestAssured).

Payment Protocols & Standards

 ISO 8583 (Message parsing and validation).

 EMV, NFC, and HCE protocols for card-present flows.

 Familiarity with SWIFT, ACH, and SEPA for settlement workflows.

Security Standards

 Deep understanding of PCI-DSS compliance.

 Working knowledge of TLS encryption and JWT for secure communications.

Databases

 Proficient in SQL (Oracle, MySQL, Postgres) for validating transaction data.

 Experience with NoSQL databases (MongoDB, Cassandra).

Testing Environments

 Virtual payment environments from Visa/Mastercard.

 Use of hardware simulators for POS and card terminals.

Required Experience (5+ Years Minimum)

Banking Expertise

 Minimum 5 years in payments/card acquiring environments.

 Proven track record in banking systems integration, high-volume transaction

systems (TPS > 10,000/sec), and compliance testing.

Automation Mastery

 3+ years designing scalable test automation frameworks.

 Hands-on CI/CD implementation with tools like Jenkins or GitHub Actions.

Security & Compliance

 Strong understanding of EMV certification processes.

 Experience with penetration testing and PCI audits.

Performance Tuning

 Deep knowledge of system optimization for low-latency financial systems.

 Expertise in load-testing distributed environments.

API & Middleware Testing

 Hands-on with complex API ecosystems, including payment orchestration.

Why This Role is Critical

As a Cards Acquiring QA Engineer, you’re the gatekeeper of seamless, secure, and e icient
payment experiences for merchants and customers alike. From architecting test frameworks to
ensuring regulatory compliance, you’ll ensure that payment ecosystems are bulletproof,
scalable, and future-ready.

Application Link :

https://forms.gle/cDvKUtwjk8f6w8gg6

Assessment Link :

All applicants need to take the technical assessment :

https://forms.gle/KyAKyk3s9vzE7W9z7
Cards Issuing QA Engineer: The Technical Breakdown

A Cards Issuing QA Engineer ensures the quality, performance, and compliance of systems
enabling the issuance and management of credit, debit, and prepaid cards. This role is deeply
technical, requiring expertise in card lifecycle management, integration with banking systems,
and adherence to regulatory standards. Banking experience is essential to this role, and
candidates must have hands-on knowledge of card management systems, transaction
lifecycles, and compliance requirements. Applicants must be South African.

*WORK FROM OFFICE ROLE IN JHB*

Core Responsibilities

Collaborate with product owners, business analysts, and engineering teams to dissect and
understand:

 Card lifecycle flows (issuance, activation, renewal, replacement, blocking).

 Customer onboarding processes for new cardholders.

 Integration with card networks (Visa, Mastercard, Amex) and core banking systems.

 Compliance requirements, including PCI-DSS, EMV standards, and local banking

regulations.

Develop end-to-end test plans encompassing:

 Functional testing for core features like card activation, transaction authorization, and
card blocking.

 Non-functional testing for high-volume transactions, ensuring low latency and high
availability.

 Regression suites for card management systems, API integrations, and card network
compliance.
Define key scenarios for fraud detection, tokenization, and multi-currency support.

Simulate cardholder interactions across various use cases, including:

 Card-present (EMV, NFC) and card-not-present (CNP) transactions.

 Virtual card issuance and integration with mobile wallets (Apple Pay, Google Pay,
Samsung Pay).

 Real-time validations for limits, fraud detection, and transaction approvals.

Test APIs and middleware components:

 Integration with card management systems (CMS) like TSYS, Fiserv, or Way4.

 Communications with payment networks using ISO 8583 or ISO 20022 protocols.

 Core banking system interfaces for transaction posting, clearing, and reconciliation.
Conduct simulations with card network certification tools provided by Visa, Mastercard,
or other providers.
Benchmark system performance to validate capacity during high transaction volumes using
tools like:

 JMeter or Gatling for large transaction simulations.

 LoadRunner for stress testing backend systems.

Ensure system uptime meets 99.999% availability (five-nines) SLA.

Validate adherence to PCI-DSS Level 1 compliance and EMVCo standards:

 Encryption standards for sensitive cardholder data (AES, RSA).

 Tokenization mechanisms to protect PANs (Primary Account Numbers).

Conduct penetration testing to identify vulnerabilities in card systems.
Ensure compliance with banking regulations such as POPIA (South Africa) and Basel III.

Architect and implement robust automation frameworks from scratch:

 Serenity BDD with Java for end-to-end workflows.

 Cucumber Gherkin for clear, behavior-driven scenarios.

 Postman for API validations with automated test suites.

Integrate frameworks with CI/CD pipelines in tools like:

 Jenkins, GitHub Actions, or Azure DevOps.

Deploy pipelines to execute daily regression suites and smoke tests.

Use tools like JIRA and TestRail to log and track bugs with detailed:

 Reproduction steps.

 System logs and traces (API/DB/Network-level debugging).

Implement root cause analysis (RCA) and collaborate on resolutions with DevOps
teams.

Partner with stakeholders to define UAT entry/exit criteria.

Test real-world scenarios, including:

 Fraudulent transaction detections and alerts.

 Interest and rewards program validations.

 Dispute resolution workflows for chargebacks and refunds.

Essential Tools & Technologies

 Java, Python, or C# for scripting automated tests.

 Selenium, Cypress, and Playwright for UI automation.

 API testing tools like Postman, RestAssured, and Swagger.

 ISO 8583 (Message parsing and validation for financial transactions).

 EMV, NFC, and HCE protocols for card-present transactions.

 3D Secure (3DS 2.0) and strong customer authentication standards.

  Proficient in SQL (Oracle, MySQL, PostgreSQL) for querying transaction data.

 NoSQL databases like MongoDB or Cassandra for real-time analytics.

 Certification tools for card network compliance testing (Visa/Mastercard test

environments).

 Simulators for virtual cards and mobile wallet integrations.

Required Experience (5+ Years Minimum)

 Minimum 5 years in card issuing environments or financial services QA roles.

 Proven track record in CMS integrations, high-volume transaction systems (TPS >
10,000/sec), and regulatory compliance testing.

 3+ years designing scalable test automation frameworks.

 Hands-on CI/CD implementation with tools like Jenkins or GitHub Actions.

 Strong understanding of PCI-DSS and EMV certification processes.

 Experience with penetration testing and vulnerability assessments.

 Deep knowledge of system optimization for low-latency financial systems.

 Expertise in load-testing distributed environments.

 Hands-on with complex API ecosystems, including CMS and payment network
orchestration.

Why This Role is Critical

As a Cards Issuing QA Engineer, you ensure the seamless and secure issuance of cards,
delivering robust functionality and an exceptional user experience for customers. By validating
every aspect of card lifecycle management and integration with payment networks, you play a
pivotal role in maintaining the integrity of the payment ecosystem.

Application Link :

https://forms.gle/cDvKUtwjk8f6w8gg6

Assessment Link :

All applicants need to take the technical assessment :

https://forms.gle/KyAKyk3s9vzE7W9z7