The Most Important Part of Payment Processing
Looking back over the last few years we have seen a lot of change in the payments world. We have seen the emergence of mobile processing, government regulation created and taking effect, and virtual currencies coming and going. Reviewing all the wonderful and confusing changes we see what worked well and what didn’t. Through it all there is one thing that has remained constant. Listen to your merchants. If you look at the news feeds today you are bound to see something about mobile payments and how it will change...
read moreWhat Merchants Should Look for with the Federal Debit Card Ruling
Last month US District Judge Richard Leon made a ruling declaring that the Durbin bill debit card regulations had sided to much with banks. Two important parts came from his ruling. First, the debit fees should be capped at a lower rate by the Fed. Second, there need to be multiple network options available to the merchant. These both look to change the payments industry in separate ways. First, lets look at the fee caps. The original cap in the Durbin amendment looked to cap rates around $0.22 per transaction. Ultimately we...
read moreWhat to Expect when Applying for a Merchant Account
Accepting credit cards is very common and a necessity for most businesses. Applying for a merchant account has also become a much quicker process. Many processors operate with the expectation that you know the process and don’t take the time to explain what is required. This raises the question; What should you expect when applying to accept credit cards? Once you’ve decided to apply for a merchant account with a processor you will need to provide some information about your business. Be prepared to...
read moreAMEX One Point
An exciting new product is now available for any merchant accepting Credit Cards. It is called Amex One Point. By enrolling in Amex One Point any merchant can combine their Merchant Processing Account statement with their American Express Statement. The exciting part is that American Express transactions are now funded in the same time frame that Visa, MasterCard, and Discover transactions are funded. This reduces the 7-10 business days that merchants wait for American Express funding down to 1-2 business days. On top of this merchants...
read moreWhat is EMV?
EMV is a method of accepting payments the involves a chip in the card presented at the time of purchase. It was created by Europay, MasterCard, and Visa (EMV) in response to vulnerabilities identified in Europe’s payment system. EMV has recently been mandated as required for all issuers in the US in 2013, and all merchants in 2015. Merchants need to be able to accept an EMV card at the POS in 2015 or accept 100% liability for the transaction. That means if its fraud, disputed, or charged back the merchant is liable for the...
read moreWhat does your business need to do to be ready for NFC?
Mobile payments via Near Field Communication (NFC) has been a very popular topic in the processing world recently. Many groups feel adoption will be fast, but it definitely will not be here tomorrow. The question on most business’ minds is “What do they need to do to be ready for NFC?” No business ever wants to lose a sale because they can’t accept a payment, but it’s not likely that next week customers will be waiving a phone at you wondering why you are not smiling and handing them their purchase. Many...
read moreStripe Payment Processing
A new online processor is called Stripe. They are being presented as a new easy way to accept payments online. All a merchant needs to do is add a few lines of code to their website and they can accept credit cards on their site. Pricing is set at 2.9% of volume and $0.30 per transaction. This company is very similar to PayPal (as it is owned by some of PayPal’s creators) and is set to grow quickly. We have gotten quite a few questions about it so here is our take: First, wow that is high pricing. Yes it nice and simple, and as...
read moreHow does the decrease of credit cards and increase of debit cards affect your business?
CNN Money reported this week that the next generation has a different method about how they will spend their money. Due to the recession and credit issues, 20-29 year olds are using almost only debit cards. Most own only one credit card. This change coupled with a migration of other generations to debit cards during the recession has seen over a 500% increase in the use of debit cards for payments since 2008. To clarify debit cards are any card that directly ties to a bank account. Every business that accepts credit cards does accept...
read moreWhat is Visa FANF?
Visa Fixed Acquirer Network Fee (FANF) is a fee that is assessed to a merchant if they accept Visa in a month. This fee is unique because it is calculated very differently from many of the fees Visa and MasterCard have imposed over the years. Until now all fees from Visa have been based off the transactions or volume a business processes. This fee is charged if you accept Visa. The size of the fee will vary depending on how you accept Visa and your type of business. If your business processes all card present transactions (swipe or...
read moreWhat is a PCI Non-Compliance fee?
A fee you should never get charged. The PCI Non-Compliance fee was created by the industry as a way to encourage merchants to complete their PCI Compliance. There is no corresponding Visa, MasterCard, or Discover charge that created it. It is pure profit for your processer when you pay it. Rhombus never charges a PCI Non-Compliance fee. It’s simple, we don’t believe in charging imaginary, made up fees to line our pockets with your money. Our PCI Program is simple. Once you are signed up we will give you a call to start the PCI...
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