A wallet top-up is the wallet-specific use of a top-up: loading money into a digital, mobile or prepaid wallet so it can be spent or sent later. The main entry covers top-ups more generally, including mobile phone credit and prepaid cards.
In a stored-value wallet, a top-up converts money from a wallet funding source, such as a debit card, bank transfer, open banking payment or cash paid to an agent, into e-money or a balance held by the provider. The wallet balance rises once the provider confirms the incoming funds. Card top-ups are usually instant but cost the provider card fees and carry chargeback risk, bank transfers are cheaper but may take longer to clear, and cash top-ups at agents are common in mobile money markets.
Top-ups are subject to the wallet's limits and to anti-money laundering controls, since repeated large top-ups followed by quick withdrawals can indicate laundering or the use of stolen cards. Providers therefore verify new funding sources and may hold newly loaded funds for a short period. A top-up is the opposite of a wallet withdrawal.