> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://developer.novacpayment.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Overview

> Learn how to automatically distribute funds from a single transaction into multiple bank accounts using Novac Split Payment.

Novac automates fund distribution by letting you configure how incoming payments are allocated across multiple accounts. To get started, you need to understand two key concepts: the primary settlement account and sub-settlement accounts, and how they work together.

## Primary Settlement Account

The primary settlement account is the main bank account linked to your Novac merchant profile. It is the default destination for all incoming payments and acts as the parent account to which all sub-settlement accounts are attached. After any configured splits are distributed, any remaining balance from a transaction stays in this account. It must be set up on the Novac dashboard before you can configure split payments via the API.

## Sub-settlement Account

A sub-settlement account is a secondary bank account you configure to automatically receive a portion of each incoming payment. You define how much each sub-settlement account receives, either as a flat fixed amount (e.g. ₦2,000 per transaction) or as a percentage of the total transaction amount (e.g. 15%). Multiple sub-settlement accounts can be linked to a single primary settlement account, and Novac distributes funds to each of them automatically at the point of payment.

<Warning>
  All split configuration requests must be made server-to-server using your **Secret Key**.
</Warning>

***

## When to Use Split Payment

Split Payment is useful across a range of business models where a single incoming payment needs to be distributed to more than one party:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card icon="store" title="Marketplaces">
    Automatically route vendor earnings and platform fees to separate accounts at the point of payment.
  </Card>

  <Card icon="building" title="Franchise Businesses">
    Distribute revenue between a franchisor and individual franchise locations without manual transfers.
  </Card>

  <Card icon="handshake" title="Partner Revenue Sharing">
    Split incoming payments between business partners or affiliates based on predefined percentages.
  </Card>

  <Card icon="calculator" title="Internal Cost Allocation">
    Route portions of each transaction to internal cost centres — e.g. IT charges or service fees.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>