Credit Card Processing

From : website101.com.

A merchant account is a special account with a bank that is a member of the Visa and MasterCard associations. Such a bank has been certified by Visa and MasterCard associations and can provide you, the merchant, with all of the services related to your merchant account. Once your merchant account is setup and "live" on the credit card system, you can accept credit cards from customers generally as follows:

* A customer presents their credit card for payment .

* Using their credit card number, you submit an electronic request to the processing network for "authorization to capture funds" from the cardholder's credit card account in the amount of the purchase. Traditionally, one would submit this request by swiping a credit card through an electronic transaction terminal provided by the bank.

* The processing network immediately receives your electronic request and determines if the cardholder's account is valid and if the funds are available. If they are, the processing network returns an electronic response to your terminal or computer. This response is called an "authorization code", and is your guaranteed authorization to capture the funds. Typically, this code is a six-digit number. The transaction and its associated authorization are stored in a "batch", where other transactions for that day reside.

* You print a receipt for the customer using the electronic terminal or your computer and the customer signs the receipt. As far as the customer is concerned, the transaction is complete. As far as you the merchant are concerned, there is one more step to complete the transaction.

* At the end of your business day (usually), you submit a final request to the processing network to go ahead and "capture the funds" that you obtained authorizations for during the course of business that day. This is called "settlement" or "settling your batch". This request is also submitted using the electronic terminal or your computer. The processing network immediately receives your response electronically and determines if the capture amounts contained in your request match the authorizations for each item. If so, the request is granted and an "Accepted" response is returned to your electronic terminal or computer. A settlement report can be printed showing the grand totals by card type (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, etc) for the settled batch. Note: any corrections to your batch, such as voiding a transaction, must be made prior to settlement.

* Within 48 to 72 hours (usually), the funds associated with the batch you settled are deposited electronically into your business bank account. Typically, the discount rate you pay to your merchant account provider are deducted from the deposit before it transferred to your bank account, resulting in a "net deposit" of funds.

* At the end of the month, your merchant account provider will mail a statement to you, detailing the credit card activity for the month and the associated fees you have been charged for such.

The History of Credit Card Processing in America

Charge cards can be dated back to the early 1900s. In 1914, what seems purely as a customer service goodwill gesture, Western Union gave some of their prominent (preferred) customers a metal card to be used in deferring payments-interest free-on services used. One source said this card became known as "Metal Money."

As time progressed so did the charge card. Up till the start of WW II, department stores, communication companies, travel and delivery companies, and oil companies had extended this service to their preferred customers. These company based charge cards were limited by their use exclusively through the issuing company. These companies issued the cards, processed the transactions, and collected the debts from the customer.

In WW II, the use of credit and charge cards was prohibited.

After WW II, credit cards became more accessible to the general public After seeing trends indicating increased travel and spending among those who held charge cards, banks became interested in credit cards-after all they were in the business of lending money, and they saw the profit potential behind attaching interest to the cards.

When banks first got into the credit card business, they were only issuing cards to local consumers. In 1951, the Franklin National Bank in New York, issued the "Charge It" card. Which allowed customers to charge purchases at local stores. This charge card system worked much like credit card systems work today. The consumer made a purchase using the card; the merchant performed a credit authorization from the network, then completed the sale. The bank would reimburse the retailer and collect the debt from the consumer at a later date. Other banks across the nation were impressed with the success of this process that within several years after the "Charge It" card they offered their customers similar services for making purchases at local retail establishments.

In the 1950s the first charge card was developed that allowed consumers to make charges for services and goods from a variety of retail outlets. This innovation was the Diner's Club charge card, which was established for business men to use for travel and entertainment expenses. The Diner's Club card gave its members up to 60-days to make payment.

The first "revolving-credit" card was issued in the State of California by the Bank of America. The card, BankAmericard, was marketed all across the state. This card set another milestone in the development of the credit card industry. The BankAmericard was the first card to give cardholders payment options. Payment options like today's cards, let consumers pay the debt in whole or they could make monthly minimum payments while the banks charged interest on the remaining balances.

By the 1960s, bank card associations begun to emerge. In 1965, Bank of America issued licensing agreements to other banks-both large and small-across the nation. These licensing agreements permitted regional banks to issue BankAmericards and to exchange transactions through issuing banks.

By 1969, most independent bank charge cards had been converted over to either the BankAmericard or Master Charge cards.

Eventually, charge card issuing and processing became too large of a task for the banking industry to handle. That is what lead to the emergence of credit card associations such as Interlink Association, Western States Bank Card Association, and National BankAmericard Inc. Current associations include Visa and Master Card.

The next major changes in the credit card industry involved streamlining transaction processing and reducing credit card fraud. In the early 1970s, electronic authorizations allowed the retail establishment to get approval for credit card transactions 24 hours per day.

By the mid 1970s, the credit card industry started exploring international waters, but had some difficulty because of the name association; "America" in BankAmericard, for instance. This lead to the renaming of BankAmericard to Visa and Master Charge followed suit by changing its name to Master Card.

By 1979, electronic processing was improving. Electronic dial up terminals and magnetic strips on the back of credit cards allowed retailers to swipe the customer's credit card through the dial up terminal, which accessed issuing bank card holder information. This process gave authorizations and processed settlement agreements in a mater of 1-2 minutes. An added benefit was paper reduction.

The early 1980s, gave birth to the first Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs), which allowed consumers access to cash, and to make deposits, 24 hours a day across our nation and in other countries as well. Credit card holders could access cash in different currencies.

Since its existence, Visa has been a leader in credit card innovation. Because of this they have emerged as the world's leading credit card association with over 1-billion cards being issued, and carrying over 50% of all credit card transactions conducted world wide.

"Visa (International) is a "not for profit" organization comprised of over 40,000 member Banks and MasterCard is a for "Profit" company who issues credit cards and sets and maintain rules for credit card acceptance and processing. They are both run by board members who are mostly high-level executives from their member banks and industry heavy hitters."

There are five leaders in the credit card industry: Visa International, MasterCard, American Express, Discover and Diner's Club. There are others trying to penetrate the industry like check processing companies, Euro Card, JCB and ATM companies but credit cards still account for over 90% of all e-commerce transactions!

Mike Knudtson is the co-founder of the Fastcharge Payment Gateway and the founder of merchant account provider Electronic Transfer, Inc.. He has helped thousands of merchants set up retail and ecommerce payment processing for their business. Electronic Transfer, Inc. is one of the leading merchant service companies serving merchants since 1989.