Changes To Interchange Rates
An interchange rate is the rate a card network charges to cover the risk of doing business. All credit transactions involve risk because no physical currency is being exchanged, and an interchange rate is calculated to mitigate that risk incurred from fraud and the threat of the card network not being paid back by the […]
Decoding Discover Interchange Rates
Discover is one of the most popular credit cards in the U.S. today, alongside tried-and-true favorites like Visa, MasterCard and American Express. It has gained popularity among younger consumers for its low introductory rates, no annual fees and rewards. Despite its wild popularity, many businesses have chosen not to accept Discover cards because of Discover’s […]
Card Tokenization
The Next Level in Preventing Credit Card Fraud In recent years, new headlines involving security breaches of big companies like Target and Uber have placed the methods by which the payments industry protects consumer data under public scrutiny. Merchants and processors have the responsibility to keep cardholder information safe, although it is increasingly hard to […]
Credit Card Encryption
Encryption & PCI Compliance Surely you’ve heard about skimmers being placed on gas station pumps or similar, of criminals trying to capture credit card information. PCI-compliance helps merchants avoid potentially dangerous situations like these. Staying PCI-compliant should be a primary concern for any merchant. Security breaches can spell disaster for businesses large and small, as […]
Understanding Data Levels 1 & 2
There are three levels of data that determine authorization and interchange pricing. All transactions require information to be authorized, but certain transactions require more information than others. The amount of data required for a transaction determines if it is a Level 1 transaction, a level 2 transaction, or a level 3 transaction, and these levels […]
Card Brand Fees
Ever wondered about those mysterious NABU fees on your statement? When you pick up your merchant services or credit card processing statement, you have probably seen pesky fees appear under a variety of labels. In most cases, these cryptic fees are labelled NABU (Network Access and Brand Usage Fees). NABU fees are also known as […]
EMV Liability Shift
In the last few years, we entered a brand-new era in card technology. This new wave of EMV technology propelled us decades ahead of magnetic stripe cards. The global adoption of chip cards is perhaps the biggest shift in credit cards we have ever seen. Businesses around the world are seeing a dramatic reduction in […]
Chargeback Ratios
Whether you’re a high-risk or low-risk merchant – chargebacks apply to everyone. Not only do chargebacks harm your bottom line, but they can also negatively impact your standing with card associations. What exactly are chargebacks? Chargebacks happen when a customer disputes a transaction. Customers may dispute transactions for a number of reasons, including non-delivery of […]
EMV Fallback
Card brands started rolling out cards with EMV chips in late 2015 in the United States. These chips were developed by Europay, MasterCard, and Visa (EMV) to combat the fraud that was associated with magnetic stripe cards. You can read more about EMV Liability Shift here. With the switch to EMV from magstripe in 2015 […]
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