# Accounts

An account represents a payment account for a beneficiary, serving as the routing point for collections, channels, and settlements.

Accounts are the central routing concept in v1. Rather than sending funds directly from one partner to another, you create an account for a beneficiary and then route collections and channels through it. Every incoming payment is credited to an account's sub-ledger, which is what makes automated reconciliation possible — funds are matched to the correct party on arrival rather than reconciled afterwards.

Each account can have its own virtual account details or deposit address, depending on the currency and payment rail.

## How accounts relate to other resources

- A [partner](/pt-br/products/collections/concepts/partners) is the party the account belongs to. An account always has a beneficiary.
- A [collection](/pt-br/products/collections/concepts/collections) or [channel](/pt-br/products/collections/concepts/channels) is created against an account using its `account_id`. This is what routes the payment.
- A [settlement](/pt-br/products/collections/concepts/settlements) draws from an account's balance to move funds to your designated destination.


## API operations

- [Create an account](/products/collections/api/collections/accounts/createaccountv1): Create a new payment account for a beneficiary.
- [List accounts](/products/collections/api/collections/accounts/listaccountsv1): Retrieve a list of all accounts, filterable by `id`, `type`, or `status`.
- [Get account details](/products/collections/api/collections/accounts/getaccountbyidv1): View the full details and current status of a single account.