Glossary | Processing Card

A

Acquirers - Financial institutions that maintain a merchant account for the purpose of accepting credit cards. See what an acquirer in credit card processing is.

Address Verification Service - A tool to help merchants identify and prevent fraudulent credit card transactions.

Adult Merchant Account - An adult payment processor for adult and sex toys websites, adult chat rooms, strip clubs, dating apps, and escort services. See adult merchant account solutions.

Authorize.net - A company that helps in simplifying the process of accepting electronic and credit card payments in person, online, or over the phone. See Author.net review.

Automated Clearing House (ACH) - A type of network that is used to manage electronic banking transactions. See High-Risk ACH Processor.

B

Business-to-Business (B2B) - A transaction or business between two businesses, for example, a wholesaler and a retailer.

Business-to-Business (B2B) Payment - The exchange of currency-denominated value between buyer and supplier in exchange for goods or services supplied. See B2B payment processing guide.

Bad Credit Merchant Account - A merchant account provided to a business owner who has a low personal credit score or has been bankrupt in the past. See more about bad credit merchant accounts.

Billback - Cost recovery accounting service or suite of software. A billback system charges the client a percentage of the total cost of what they have purchased.

Bitcoin - This is essentially a computer file that is kept on a smartphone or PC in a digital wallet app. See the easiest way to start accepting bitcoin payments.

C

Card Association Network - Facilitates the use of credit and debit cards and establishes guidelines for who may use cards, where they may be used, and how they may be used.

CBD Merchant Account - A merchant account that enables you to take credit card payments but has been approved for the sale of CBD-derived products. See CBD merchant account solutions.

Chargeback Disputes - This occurs when a cardholder disputes a transaction and requests that it be reversed by the card's issuing bank.

Chase Credit Journey - A free online credit monitoring service available to both Chase cardholders and individuals without a bank account. See Chase Credit Journey review.

Card Not Present (CNP) Rate - Rates that are charged to your merchant account whenever a CNP transaction occurs. See what the CNP rate on merchant accounts is.

Card Not Present (CNP) Transaction - An event when neither the cardholder nor the credit card is physically present at the time of the transaction.

Continuity Merchant Account - A recurring billing merchant account enables you to quickly and securely take payments from your customers. See more about continuity merchant account processor.

Credit Card - A card that enables people to purchase products or services without using cash.

Credit Card Processor - It operates as a go-between for a business and its customers' credit card companies. See more about credit card processor.

Credit History - A record of your ability to repay debts and your demonstrated commitment in doing so.

Cryptocurrency - A digital currency where transactions are verified and records are kept using cryptography by a decentralized system. See how cryptocurrency will impact digital payments.

D

Digital Wallet - Also known as an e-wallet; a method of storing payment information and passwords for security purposes. See digital wallet review.

Direct Credit Card Processor - Refers to any payment processing company that has direct access to the credit networks of Visa and MasterCard. See direct credit card processors.

Dispute Rate - This is the number of disputes related to transactions that a merchant has over a specified period. See average dispute rate for credit card merchant services.

E

EMV - This is a payment method based on a technical standard for smart payment cards and compatible with payment terminals and automated teller machines. See EMV guide.

eCommerce - Refers to a business model that enables businesses/individuals to purchase/sell goods and services online.

e-Commerce Merchant Account - Refers to a merchant account through which e-Commerce merchants can accept online payments. See e-Commerce merchant account providers.

F

Fiat Payment - Currency issued by the government that is unbacked by a commodity such as gold.

First Data - A financial services provider founded in 1971 in the United States that serves a diverse range of businesses and customers. See First Data (Now Fiserv) review.

Flat Rate - It is a pricing structure in which a fixed fee is charged for a particular service. It is constant regardless of circumstance, time, or location. See how many credit card processors offer flat rates.

Freshbooks - An accounting software designed primarily for small and medium-sized businesses that is operated by 2ndSite Inc. See what credit card processors work with Freshbooks.

H

High-Risk ACH Processor - A merchant account for ACH processing for a high-risk company. See more about high-risk ACH processor.

High Risk Processor - A payment processing account for businesses that banks regard to be high risks. See the best high risk processor.

High-Volume Merchant Account - This is for merchants who process a monthly minimum of $100,000 — most of them process far more. See more about high-volume merchant account.

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) - This is a law to prevent the sharing of sensitive customer information without the individual's knowledge or consent. See what online payment processors are HIPAA compliant.

I

Independent Sales Organization (ISO) - An Independent Sales Organization (ISO) is a company that acts as an intermediary between merchants and the acquiring banks. See ISO in credit card processing.

Interchange-plus Pricing - This means that the acquirer will charge you a variable MSC that includes the cost price plus a fixed markup.

L

Liquidated Damages - Used in certain types of legal contracts to estimate intangible or difficult-to-define losses suffered by one of the parties.

M

Merchant Account - Type of business bank account that enables the acceptance and processing of electronic payment card transactions. See how to get a merchant account.

Merchant Discount Rates (MDR) - Fees charged by banks to businesses for credit and debit card payment processing.

Merchant Services - An umbrella term that refers to a variety of financial services and processes that modern businesses may use. See merchant services.

Mobile Payment Security - Considered as establishing security procedures to safeguard the data, privacy, and money of customers. See the best practices for mobile payment security.

Mobile Processor - It enables retailers to sell products and take card payments virtually as long as they have access to a smartphone or tablet. See mobile processing apps solutions.

MOTO Credit Card Processing - Stands for "Mail Order/Telephone Order (MOTO)". Occurs when a customer makes a purchase over the phone or by mail. See MOTO credit card processing.

MOTO Merchant Account - Allows you to accept credit cards manually through the use of a virtual terminal. See why MOTO merchant accounts are high risk.

N

National Automated Clearing House (NACHA) - Manages the ACH Network's development, administration, and governance.

O

Online Payment Processor - The institution or brand that processes debit and credit card transactions for your business. See more about online payment processor.

P

PayAnywhere - A dependable mobile credit card processing system that is well-known for its cost-effectiveness.

Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) - This is a generally recognized set of policies and procedures aimed at enhancing the security of credit, debit, and cash card transactions.

Payment Depot - A merchant account provider that charges transaction fees based on your plan, not the terminal you use. See Payment Depot mobile review.

Payment Gateway - Retailers utilize this technology to take debit or credit card payments from customers. See the best payment gateways.

Payment Page - A webpage that enables customers to easily and securely purchase products or services. See how to design a payment page.

PayPal - A multinational financial technology company that operates an online payments system and acts as an electronic substitute for traditional paper methods. See PayPal and how it is used.

PCI Compliance Fee - A fee charged on credit card processing service providers and sales organizations by the PCI DSS.

PCI Standards Security Counsel, LLC - It is a global open body established to develop, improve, distribute, and aid in the understanding of payment account security standards.

Point-of-sale (POS) system - The place where your customer makes payment for the products or services supplied by your business. See the best POS systems.

Pre-Authorization - This is a temporary hold placed on a customer's credit card that typically lasts five days, or until the post-authorization is received. See what credit card processors support pre-authorizations.

Processing fee - It is the total fee assessed for each online transaction. It is composed of two charges: Percentage Fee and Transaction Fee. See how much credit card processing fees are.

Q

QuickBooks - A comprehensive business and financial management suite that includes tools for accounting, inventory management, and more. See how to record credit card processing fees in QuickBooks.

R

Regulation E - Regulation E is a Federal Reserve Board initiative to establish rules and guidelines for Electronic Fund Transfers.

Regulation Z - Frequently associated with the Truth In Lending Act; this protects consumers from credit industry's misleading practices.

Reserve - A temporary hold on a portion of your funds before being deposited into your bank account.

S

Service Fee - Also known as service charge; a fee collected to cover the cost of services associated with a product. See how to add a service fee for credit card payments.

Shopify - An ecommerce platform that serves as the foundation for an online store. It assists in organizing the appearance of your store.

Stripe - An Irish-American financial services and software with offices in San Francisco, California and Dublin, Ireland. See Stripe review.

T

Terminated Merchant File (TMF) - This is a screening tool that credit card processing companies use to determine the suitability of potential merchants to have a merchant account. See Terminated Merchant File.

Third-Party Credit Card Processors - As the name implies, this is a company that accepts online payments on your behalf. See what third-party credit card processors do exactly.

Travel Merchant Account - The processing of credit cards for travel booking agencies, travel clubs, hotels/motels, and all types of tour operators. See travel merchant account solutions.

Transaction Fee - It is a fee assessed to a business each time it processes a customer's payment. See ways to reduce transaction fees.

Z

Zero-fee processing - A pricing method that imposes a fixed surcharge on all transactions made with a credit card.

Making business decisions is difficult when you don't know where to begin. At Processing Card, we present reviews and comparisons of only the best B2B services and processing solutions so that all you have to do is pick what will work best for your business.