# Alternative Payment Methods
source: https://developer.mastercard.com/mastercard-gateway/documentation/payment-methods/alt-pay-methods/index.md

Alternative payment methods (APMs) are any form of payment that is not cash or a major international credit card brand. Companies are leveraging alternative rails like account to account (A2A), often starting in peer-to-peer (P2P), and expanding to build their own proprietary acceptance and merchant network, which poses a disintermediation risk for card schemes through closed loop solutions.