Let's take a look at what matters - and doesn't - when it comes to applying for a merchant account. Why does my personal credit matter? When a business runs a credit card transaction, funds are removed from a customer's credit account and are deposited to the business' bank account under the assumption that the merchant has delivered the products...

For example: If your merchant account has a 5% rolling reserve for 18 months, the processor will withhold 5% of your gross sales. The 5% of sales that are withheld will not be accessible to you for a year and a half. Why are rolling reserves imposed? Rolling reserves may be applied to high risk merchant accounts by a processor to lessen the...

Charts are easily manipulated, leaving you to try comparing apples and oranges. Even if the creator of the chart doesn't intend to mislead, a lack of complete information can be just as detrimental to finding the right solution. When you're looking for the best credit card processor, the key is to find the right one for your specific business. I...

Note: Samsung Pay is now part of Samsung Wallet. You may still see it referred to as Samsung Pay, but the company website prompts customers to upgrade to Samsung Wallet, where Pay is one 'module' or option within the wallet. What is Samsung Pay? Samsung Pay is a digital wallet that can be used with Samsung Galaxy phones in models S6 and lat...

Tips over a certain percentage of the bill can trigger flags for fraud, resulting in card issuer-initiated chargebacks, or can cause your transaction to be downgraded to a more expensive interchange category. Tip Tolerance When credit and debit cards are swiped in a restaurant, the amount authorized includes a 20% “tip tolerance.” This mean...

Since it's launch in 2014, Apple Pay has been gaining traction as a payment method for consumers. More businesses are switching to contactless terminals, meaning there will be even more locations that can accept Apple Pay in the future. What is Apple Pay? Apple Pay is a digital wallet that allows consumers to pay for purchases without using...

For most businesses, the compliance date was October 1st, 2015. (Pay at the pump gas stations had until 2020 to comply due to the cost and complexity of the upgrades.) What is EMV? EMV stands for Europay, MasterCard, and Visa, after the three companies that initially worked together on the technology. Today, American Express, Discover, JCB,...

OptBlue provides potential benefits to businesses in the form of transparency and reduced costs over current American Express's old One Point pricing, but it also opens the door for uninformed businesses to overpay. If you're looking for an American Express merchant account, here's what you'll need to look for - and what to avoid. What is...

In this article, I'll explain the benefits and limitations of interchange plus to help you avoid overpriced merchant accounts, and why "interchange plus" isn't enough on its own. Interchange Plus is a Pricing Model, Not a Guarantee Many of the articles here at CardFellow refer to interchange plus as a "pricing model." Some pricing models ar...

The best you can hope for is a slight reduction in cost over a short period of time. As soon as you turn your back, it's a return to business as usual for your offending processor as fees creep back up. By the time you notice you're being overcharged (again), you've already lost hundreds (or thousands!) of dollars. It's a never-ending game that'...