The emergence of internet-driven operations in the banking sector has propelled a remarkable change in our day to day transactions. With credit/debit cards in our wallets, we no longer need to carry cash to shopping platforms. Similarly, bank-issued cheques are now out of fashion. Keeping abreast with the customers’ behavioral shifts, high-risk merchant processing industry witnesses a competition never imagined before. Giant companies can no longer claim their positions if they miss upgrading their functionality and the value that they provide to the end user. Companies like American Express, Visa and MasterCard, PCI companies, Discover, etc. have demonstrated their acumen thus staying in business so far.
All the while, credit card companies serve as an important junction between high-risk merchants and facilitate real-time service to both the customers and retail merchants. Credit/debit cards, often called the plastic money, have allowed customers reach an enormous market through wireless credit card processing. Also, it has encouraged retail merchants and online shops to accept payment that hitherto used to be in the form of cash or bank cheques. Credit card companies provide a greater level of accessibility and security thus making purchase and payments a positive sum game altogether.
What are Merchant Account Services?
Merchant account services serve as an intermediary between the business firm and the bank (concerned with the credit card). What merchant account services do is that they withdraw the appropriate amount from the customer’s account and then transfer the same to the business as payment from the customer. Though operating in a vast domain of businesses, merchant account services are of the following types:
Internet-based Merchant Accounts
Most suitable for e-commerce and processing online orders, Internet-based merchant accounts charge a predeclared amount for every transaction. Internet accessibility and the rise of e-commerce has promoted its growth in recent years
- Mail or Telephone Order
This merchant account permits customers to make payments via a phone call or through direct mails. Though a viable method of payment, the risks involved are large here. Quite so, the costs are also high to compensate for it.
- Retail Merchant Account
Your mall experiences are enhanced when you swipe your debit/credit card to make a payment for your purchases. This option requires you to swipe your card physically through the payment terminal equipment, and so it is more secure than the other ones.
How Wireless Credit Cards Function?
- Merchants use the wireless credit card equipment while swiping the card, the subsequent sale amount is entered in manually or electronically.
- Utilizing telecommunication technology, the machine transfers the card info and the details of the sale amount, etc. to the merchant processor.
- In turn, the processor will pass the information to the credit card issuing authority (or the bank, as the case may be).
- After the bank verifies the card details and account credentials, the bank will send an approval to the processing machine in a short while.
Caution
While credit cards are designed to provide you with the best shopping experiences, you need to be careful while using it. US alone has more than 40% of credit card fraud victims. You don’t want to be a victim of credit card related crimes.
- Make sure your credit card stays only with you or the person you have authorized.
- While making an online payment, you should ensure that the internet connections are secured and does not risk leakage of your card information such as card number or passcode etc.
- Additionally, you should call upon your bank at least once a month to know about your credit card spendings to detect any unauthorized use.