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Batch processing accounts receivable and donations- Caging services solutions

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Replacing ICVerify or other legacy software for batch credit card processing? Whether you’re in the cloud, or headed there, methods of payment processing have changed to meet current and future requirements for PCI Compliance and fraud prevention. For service providers, including non-profit mail processing, payment gateway selection impacts efficiency, merchant fees, and even client PCI Compliance burden.

The first way efficiency can be increased is the batch upload process. It’s basically the same for credit card processing and check processing. Here’s comparisons for payment gateway methodology for batch upload service:

CenPOS Batch Processing File Upload

  1. Save file to configurable directory (listening folder)

CenPOS Batch Processing Response File Retrieval

  1. Retrieve one or multiple files from configurable directory (response folder)

Authorize.net, Payeezy (First Data) and similar Batch Processing File Upload

  1. Log in to your Merchant Interface at https://account.authorize.net or other
  2. Click Upload Transactions.
  3. Click Upload New Transaction File.
  4. Click Browse.
  5. Locate from your system the file that you want to upload.
  6. Click Upload File.

Authorize.net, Payeezy (First Data)and similar Batch Processing Response File Retrieval

  1. Log into the Merchant Interface at https://account.authorize.net or other
  2. Click Tools from the main toolbar.
  3. Click Upload Transactions.
  4. Click View Status of Uploaded Transaction Files.
  5. Select the desired uploaded transaction file from the Select Upload File drop-down list.
  6. Click Submit.

CenPOS increases efficiency to upload and retrieve responses, reduces friction with no login required, and also supports multi-merchant login, enabling users to toggle between accounts, creating efficiency for both the service provider and the merchant.

More BATCH UPLOAD differences authorize.net CenPOS
Custom fields (share across channels) No Yes
Reporting 2 years Indefinite
Telephone support no yes 24/7

Merchant fees are impacted when a transaction does not qualify at the lowest interchange rate possible. For example, business to business companies must submit level III data to qualify for related rates, which are often 90 basis points (0.90%) lower than without. The payment gateway must be certified for level III to each acquirer supported. Only a few payment gateways are level III certified, and even fewer of those offer an acceptable batch upload solution.

PCI Compliance burden is reduced with tokenization, outsourced payment processing, reduced vendors and reporting. The latter is critically important for forensic audits, as well as financial. The average gateway only saves data for two years, and has limited data retrieval capabilities. CenPOS audit reports cover every touch to the platform- who, what, when, and more, with records available for a minimum of 7 years to match IRS requirements, reducing the cost of on-site and remote audits.

To learn more about batch credit card processing, replacing ICVerify, and cloud payment differentiators, Contact Christine Speedy for a free consultation for all your omnichannel global payment needs.

EMV chip and pin liability shift hidden merchant risk

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EMV terminal and EMV technology selection can impact merchant liability depending on chip and pin capabilities and management of them. Use this information to ask key questions before selecting an EMV solution.

Liability shift for stolen cards for MasterCard, American Express, and Discover

  • If the card is chip & sign, and the terminal is EMV only, the card issuer is liable
  • If the card is chip & pin, and the terminal is EMV only, the merchant is liable
  • If the card is chip & pin, and the terminal is EMV with pin, the issuer is liable

What if the terminal supports EMV & pin, but the customer does chip & sign? The merchant is liable.  Acquirers generally support chip and pin bypass to chip and signature. The only way to effectively manage liability is to steer customers to the action protecting the merchant.

emv fraud liabilityTerminals may be able to be programmed to disable pin bypass; First Data ships terminals with PIN bypass disabled.

  • Integrated payment gateways and and standalone virtual terminals can also drive terminals; because the terminals have no programming, the payment technology must have the capability to dynamically determine the best way to process, and prompt the consumer to the actions allowed. This is a tall order for most gateways, as they do not have that type of dynamic capability, and or, the gateway may not have the needed EMV certification. CenPOS disables the consumers ability to select signature over pin at the POS.

The entire EMV transaction process is certified. If an EMV certified terminal, including integrated or non-integrated payment gateway with terminal, doesn’t support the option to require chip and pin when the card issuer supports it, merchants need to weigh the associated financial risks.

 

Which acquirers are ready to accept chip card transactions on EMV certified terminals today?

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emv smart cardUnofficial list of acquirers for retail merchants who want to be EMV Compliant by October 1. As merchants and industry sales people are discovering, not all processors are ready. For those merchants that want to be EMV Compliant to accept chips cards for the liability shift, this is a huge problem.

This list is to help avoid confusion about getting you ready vs getting you EMV enabled.

Every acquirer,  terminal manufacturer, and industry reseller has language in their marketing materials about ‘getting you ready’. And that’s exactly what will happen. Merchants who install EMV capable terminals or Point of Sale systems will be ‘ready’ for when everyone (equipment manufacturer, acquirer, POS or gateway, as applicable) completes their certification.

EMV Compliant: Merchant has certified EMV terminals and their merchant account has been EMV enabled to accept chip cards.

10 largest merchant acquirers of 2013 were:

1. Bank of America
2. Chase Paymentech Solutions
3. First Data
4. Vantiv
5. Elavon
6. Wells Fargo Merchant Services
7. Citi Merchant Services
8. Global Payments
9. Heartland Payment Systems
10. WorldPay

In no particular order, this is a list of acquirers supporting terminal options for merchants to get EMV enabled. There’s one big provision. Acquirers have multiple transaction processing platforms. A merchant could be on a platform that’s not EMV capable yet, though the acquirer has another EMV capable platform. Additionally, the certified terminal solution may require a third party gateway. If changing processors, confirm with the acquirer, Independent Service Organization (ISO), or bank that they can accept chip cards immediately. To make the list, the terminal must support contact EMV debit and credit at a minimum.

Merchant acquirers with EMV Compliant solution today with countertop terminal:

  • First Data- FD50, FD100, FD200 series with FD35 required; FD130, FD130 DUO with FD35 required. Note, all terminals require specific application revision.

Merchant acquirers with EMV Compliant solution today with multi-lane terminal:

Multi-lane signature capture terminals require a payment gateway. To List of integrated solutions vendors and their certifications:

  • CenPOS certified Verifone MX 915 to First Data
  • CenPOS certified Verifone MX 915 to TSYS

Merchant acquirers with EMV Compliant solution today with mobile terminal:

  • ChargeAnywhere certified Miura Shuttle M006 & M010 to First Data
  • Highline retail cloud software certified VeriFone E315/E335 PINPAD to First Data. Requires using Highline all-in-one- POS software and merchant services.

TSYS offers transaction processing products and solutions to financial institutions, including banks and acquirers, among other services. For example, a bank may use both TSYS and First Data in their merchant services environment. TSYS is available as a connection option to most if not all the big acquirers. Bottom line: if your acquirer does not have the EMV certified terminal desired, TSYS may be the solution to more choices. Ask the EMV solution provider, not the acquirer questions, because the acquirer is less likely to know anything about products and services they don’t sell.

Resources:

Acquirer, Payment Gateway and POS Solutions Provider EMV Roadmap- Links to the related EMV certification list and or schedule for EMV certification. Bookmark this page now!

  • authorize.net – scroll down the page ETA support dates are 2016; no equipment specifics listed. Note: NFC payments also not supported yet.
  • Shift4 emv roadmap – the 3rd graphic is completed certifications; none in US to date.

Sales contacts: 3D Merchant Services offers EMV compliant solutions, including CenPOS, for retail merchants with $1M minimum annual processing; new merchant account may not be required.

Data Source: Web sites, acquirer bulletins to industry, Linkedin –  I maintain this subject for open comment on the Linkedin US EMW discussion board with over 3,500 members, mostly industry insiders. Recommended reading- EMV handbook for merchants by Verifone. It has a great Q&A section.

Have an addition or update? Please add your comments!

Level 3 Gateway

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Level 3 payment processing requires a level 3 gateway, but most merchants don’t realize how big an impact gateway selection has on merchant fees paid.

Merchants selling to other businesses or the government benefit from Level 3 processing and the savings this provides on commercial, purchasing and government transactions by processing level 3 Data. What gateway companies won’t tell you, is that not only do you need to send special data, but there are a bunch of rules to qualify for Data Rate III interchange rates as shown in the image below. Don’t follow the rules, and you’ll pay Data Rate I or Standard.

level 3 interchange ratesWhat are the rules? For starters, there are additional fields that must be submitted with the transaction. All the level 3 gateways support submitting the data, though they may do it in different ways. There are other rules such as the authorization and settlement amount must match. It’s unrealistic to expect any user to know all the rules for any transaction to qualify at the lowest interchange rate, so a payment gateway that automates that process is critical. This is where most payment gateways fail. They can submit data, but have no intelligence to help merchants comply with qualification rules.

What gateway supports level 3 for retail, kiosk, mobile or any swiped transaction? CenPOS.

Gateways must certify level 3 to each acquirer, also known as payment processor, or credit card processor. The certifications can include for retail, retail EMV, MOTO (Mail Order Telephone Order), and ecommerce. Very few gateways certify level 3 for all sales channels. The only one I’m aware of that’s certified retail and retail EMV is CenPOS.

Gateways supporting level 3 for MOTO:

What level 3 gateway is compatible with First Data? CenPOS, First Data Global Gateway e4 – now called Payeezy. While CenPOS automates level III processing, First Data has multiple optional steps after the sale, leaving compliance up to the individual user; additionally, their method does not guarantee that all rules will be met to qualify for level III interchange rates. Authorize.net and Payflow Pro offer level III with certain API’s only.

What level 3 gateway is compatible with Vantiv or NPC? CenPOS

What level 3 gateway is compatible with Chase Paymentech? CenPOS, Paymentech Orbital, PayTrace. Paymentech and Paytrace have optional extra steps, leaving compliance up to the individual user; additionally, their methods do not guarantee that all rules will be met to qualify for level III interchange rates. Authorize.net and Payflow Pro offer level III with certain API’s only.

What level 3 gateway is compatible with Tsys? CenPOS, eProcessing Network, Authorize.net and Payflow Pro offer level III with certain API’s only

What level 3 gateway is compatible with Moneris? CenPOS

What about Revolution Payments, Vantage Card Services and other gateways not listed here? In most cases, the company is a reseller of a gateway listed above, not a gateway manufacturer. Network Merchants, LLC (NMI) distributes a white label solution that supports level 3 data, but there’s no public information about acquirer certification; BluePay and 3DSI also offer level 3, but it’s unclear what acquirers. Please add your suggestions in comments.

As of September 15, 2015, of the brands listed in this post, only CenPOS has both certified EMV terminals to accept chip cards with their gateway, and has also certified level 3 processing for all sales channels via any method, including API, virtual terminal, and online payments.