| Credit cards are all over the place. Earlier, a few select | | | | completely. Big players no longer monopolize the card |
| businesses accepted cards as payment options. Now, | | | | processing market. The internet has facilitated the |
| almost all businesses accept credit payments. How did | | | | entry of small players into this domain by providing fast |
| this change come about? What is making credit cards | | | | and cheap transfer of information. |
| such a popular payment option? The answer to these | | | | Lowering cost of hardware and software has made it |
| questions is affordable processing fees. | | | | possible for small companies to process electronic |
| Credit transactions always involve some risk. Any | | | | payments effectively, and at much lower costs than |
| company that plays a part in the credit chain will | | | | banks and giants like Visa and MasterCard. The cost |
| charge for its services. As card processor facilitates | | | | of online payment gateways has also reduced |
| card payments for a business, it charges a processing | | | | drastically and many businesses have taken their |
| fee for its service. | | | | products online through ecommerce applications. |
| Origin of credit card processors | | | | Big drop in credit card processing fees |
| Extending credit to customers is an age-old policy to | | | | As the internet makes credit and debit card processing |
| assure more sales. United States saw the first credit | | | | faster and cheaper, more and more companies are |
| cards in early twentieth century, with oil companies and | | | | jumping in to get a slice of the pie. The competition is |
| hotels being the pioneer card issuers. Processing and | | | | bringing down the cost of processing fees like never |
| collection of the bills was carried out by the businesses | | | | before. Small businesses can easily afford the cost of |
| in-house. Then, banks began to offer credit cards and | | | | processing fees, making cards a viable payment |
| took over the messy work of processing card | | | | option. This also increases their total sales volume, as |
| transactions. Businesses were unburdened from | | | | many customers prefer to pay with credit. |
| having to extend credit from their own funds. The job | | | | Reasonable processing fee and good quality service |
| of processing and collecting bills was transferred to | | | | A good processing fee should not be at the cost of |
| banks. | | | | low quality services. Card processors offer many |
| Success of early credit card processors | | | | services such as setting up merchant accounts, |
| As banks took on the task of processing card | | | | installing point-of-sale terminals for processing cards, |
| transactions, many businesses began to accept credit | | | | supporting ecommerce applications, using secure |
| and debit cards as payment options. Visa and | | | | technology to avoid fraud, and more. |
| MasterCard appeared on the scene offering effective | | | | Card processing fee is an important factor that can |
| credit processing services and taking the tedious work | | | | improve a business' profit margins. However, a credit |
| out of the hands of businesses. Credit card business | | | | or debit card processing company that quotes high |
| flourished and so did the card processing companies. | | | | processing fees with excellent services is a better |
| Arrival of the Internet | | | | deal than one that offers drop-down rates and |
| The internet has changed the market scene | | | | unreliable services. |