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Thursday, April 29, 2010

Shopping for Credit Cards - Bloomberg

Shopping for Credit Cards - Bloomberg: Your Money

April 29, 2010What type of credit card consumer are you? The way you use your card might impact the type of credit card you use. Find out how to compare credit cards and how the Credit Card Act of 2009 will affect future purchases you make.



The Credit Card Act, The Fine Print

April 29, 2010 — President Obama signed the Credit Card Accountability Responsiblity and Disclosure Act in May of 2009. This sweeping legislation has changed the fine print in the cardholder agreements that come with your credit card. Find out how the what the new law will affect you.


Monday, April 26, 2010

Getting Rid of Student Loans

April 26, 2010Tips for paying off your student loans and other debt without selling your stuff.


Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Visa Buys CyberSource to Add Internet Sales, Security

April 21 (Bloomberg) -- Bloomberg's Deirdre Bolton and Erik Schatzker report on Visa Inc.'s agreement to buy CyberSource Corp. for about $2 billion in cash to improve its offering of online transaction services and help fight fraud. (Source: Bloomberg)

Monday, April 12, 2010

MasterCard Names Ajay Banga CEO, Succeeding Selander

April 12 (Bloomberg) -- Ajay Banga, newly named chief executive officer of MasterCard Inc., says in a teleconference that the second-biggest electronic-payments network will increase focus in e-commerce and mobile applications. Banga, who joined MasterCard as president and chief operating officer from Citigroup Inc. last August, will succeed Robert Selander at the top position on July 1. Bloomberg's Sheila Dharmarajan reports. (Source: Bloomberg)


Saturday, April 10, 2010

6 Good Reasons Why You Need a Payment Gateway Service for a More Competitive Online Business

A payment gateway facility has become a must for almost every online retailer in order to accept credit cards and other electronic payment forms. The benefits of having this service include fast processing of online transactions, security for you and your customers, more payment channels catered, increase in customer base, bigger profits, and better liquidity.

Does an online business really require a payment gateway facility for it to work on the Internet? Maybe not, but integrating such service in your system presents enormous advantages to make your business more successful and competitive. Here are the main benefits of getting a payment gateway facility for your online business:

Fast processing of online transactions

An Internet payment gateway facility features real-time processing and approval of credit card and other electronic payment transactions. You will instantly know whether a certain transaction is approved or declined. It is not like with check payments, wherein you need to wait for days to find out whether a check has been cleared in your account or has bounced or returned for some reason. Customers, on the other hand, do not have to wait long for their transaction to be processed.

Security for you and your customers

One of the most attractive features of payment gateway is that it instantly prompts retailers for stolen credit cards and probable fraudulent transactions. It helps you avoid the risk of having to deal with these types of transactions and incur losses. Customers on the other hand, will feel more secure, since with payment gateway service, the data they input upon purchasing online will be handled safely in the provider’s secure servers It is not done on your website that may still have the risk of being hacked. There is also a chargeback guarantee for customers to assure them of refund in case the product or service was not delivered, the product or service delivered is not the one described, or they are not satisfied with the product or service you deliver.

More payment channels catered

Payment gateway service providers also offer virtual terminals that allow you to accept and process payments in a fast, safe, and convenient manner via different payment channels. A payment gateway does not just let you accept credit cards online, but also from mobile, mail, and telephone purchases.

Increase in customer base

With the more payment options you offer, plus all the security, speed, and convenience you give your customers by means of your payment gateway, your store will become more attractive to them. Customers always make it appoint to buy from stores that provide them fast, convenient, and secure shopping. Especially in today’s setting wherein online purchases are widely practiced, it is really a great comfort for your customers to shop online using credit cards and other electronic payment forms. Some customers also prefer to pay through their mobile phones, which is made possible with a payment gateway facility. Aside from this, you will also be able to cater to international customers, thus increasing your customer base and sales.

Bigger profits

Despite the added costs for applying and maintaining a payment gateway facility, you are sure to have increased profits as you will be expecting more sales with increased customer base. It also allows your online business to process transactions at any time of the day and any day of the week. Your main objective in putting up a business to earn profit is not only realized, but is augmented. With increased profits, you can expand your business by adding more products and services or employing other expansion methods that make your business more competitive and profitable.

Better liquidity

With a payment gateway facility, your business will be more liquid as funds are usually directed to your merchant account in as fast as one to two days. It promotes a more efficient cash flow that can help you manage your operations better when it comes to handling your sales and your expenses.

Aside from all these benefits, some payment gateway service providers offer more value-added products and services. They offer incentives to their clients, such as free shopping cart, recurring billing, and even free directories and links to other providers that you might need for your business, such as web developers and Internet service providers. Instead of having to go through the search or application for certain services yourself, you can make your payment gateway facility service provider your one-stop destination for most of your business needs.

Friday, April 9, 2010

Pay Your Rent Online with ClickPayRent.com

Pay Your Rent Online

ClickPayRent.com’s Steve and Tom Kiernan break down how they can help with the hassle of paying rent.



Friday, April 2, 2010

11 Maintenance Fees in Operating a Merchant Account to Understand Your Account Statement Better

In an ecommerce merchant account, you have to pay certain fees to maintain it. They are the following: discount rates, transaction fees, authorization fees, statement fees, Address Verification Service fees, batch fees, monthly minimum fees, gateway fees, annual fees, charge-back fees, and early termination or cancellation fee.

Having an e-commerce merchant account puts your business on top among all of your competitors. It does not only give convenience to you and your customers but it also increases your business sales, increases your business’ potential to the global market, and invites lots of customers. But with all its advantages to your business, you may also have to deal with plenty of fees just to sustain and operate your merchant account. You often face your account statement every month but couldn’t really figure out where all these high fees are coming from. Knowing the rates and costs is one way to really understand your account. Given below are some fees associated when operating a merchant account:

Discount rates

The discount rates are the fees that merchants have to pay to their providers for accepting credit or debit cards. It is also a commission earned by the merchant account service every time a credit card transaction is processed. Rates vary according to the business’ criterion. It is categorized into qualified discount rate, mid-qualified rate, and non-qualified rate.

Transaction fees

This fee is specifically charged every time a merchant processes a credit card transaction on his merchant account.

Authorization fees

This fee is charged every time a merchant ask for card authorization to the customer’s card-issuing bank. Whether the transactions are approved or not, the fee still applies.

Statement fees

This fee is also termed as the service fee. These are monthly fees that cover the customer service, and print-outs of reports and account statement.

Address verification service fees

When transactions are made and sent to the card-issuing bank, it will pass through a validation system in which it will check if the address and zip code registered by the buyer if it matches to the information he passed to his issuing bank. This is charged every time merchant validates their customers’ cards.

Batch fees

Batch fees, or also called as batch header fees, are flat fees paid for every batch of funds settled in the merchant’s terminal or when the customer’s card-issuing bank has already transferred some funds to the merchant bank as payment.

Monthly minimum fee

There are merchant account providers that require merchants to meet a minimum number of sales every month. If they can’t meet their quota, a monthly minimum fee is charged.

Gateway fees

They are charged each time online merchants use gateway services for online credit card transactions.

Annual fees

Annual fees are charged solely for maintaining the operation of the merchant account. It could also be paid quarterly.

Chargeback fees

These fees are charged every time a merchant have an unsatisfied customer who wants a refund. The merchant would have to pay for the costs of the transaction so that the refund will be delivered back to the customer.

Early termination or cancellation fee

When a merchant avails a merchant account, he will sign a contract that binds him to the merchant account provider for a certain period of time. If he decides to cancel his account or move to another company in less than the agreed span of time, he’ll be asked to pay an early termination or cancellation fee. This would only cover the start-up expenses of the canceled account.

The fees in maintaining a merchant account varies from one provider to the other. To really get the best deal in having a merchant account, read the contract, policies, rates and costs of the company before you sign up.

3 Basic Types of Auto Insurance Coverage

Here are the three basic types of auto insurance coverage: liability coverage, physical damage coverage, uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage.

Acquiring a car insurance policy is a must. It would be unwise to buy and drive a car without any insurance. Having an auto insurance protects you, your vehicle, properties, and third parties should accidents arise. A comprehensive type of auto insurance policy is quite expensive but it is capable of covering all types of damages, accidents and theft. A third party policy is more affordable, but, it can only cover repair cost on a third party's vehicle where the fault has been proven to be on your part. Every insurance policy has different coverage types. Coverage type would refer to the kind of protection as well as the extent to which an insurance policy will cover in the event of any damage or loss. Here are the three basic types:

Liability coverage type

Liability coverage can either be a bodily injury liability or a property damage liability. A bodily injury liability is a type of coverage that covers for the injuries and death of other people's body that are under your responsibility. Should there be any lawsuit against you due to an accident, this type of liability coverage will provide you with a legal defense. However, this type of coverage does not cover you. The other type of liability coverage, which is the property damage liability, covers the damages arising from accidents that you cause. Among the possible coverage would be the damage inflicted on other people's car, house, fence and other properties.

Physical damage coverage type

This type of coverage has two kinds: the comprehensive coverage other than collision; and, the collision coverage. A comprehensive coverage other than collision is designed to cover your vehicle for any damage except that is caused by collision. Damages that are covered would be those arising from theft, as well as damages caused by animals, fire and even flood. Another kind of physical damage coverage is a collision coverage. This covers damages to your car due to a collision. Collision covered under this insurance would include these two circumstances - either your car was hit or you hit another vehicle or any other object.

Underinsured and uninsured motorist coverage type

This coverage encompasses four kinds: the uninsured motorist coverage; the underinsured motorist coverage; uninsured motorist property damage; and, the underinsured motorist property damage. The uninsured motorist coverage covers you, your household members who are insured, and the passengers that you have for any damages, injuries or even death that have been caused by a hit-and-run or an uninsured driver. An underinsured motorist bodily injury also covers you, your insured members of the household, passengers if there are any, during an accident causing damage, loss, or injury which has been on the fault of another party whose insurance is not sufficient to cover for all necessary expenses. The third kind, which is the uninsured motorist property damage, covers your car should there be any property damage that an insured is undergoing and the one operating or driving the car is not an insurance holder. Lastly, the underinsured motorist property damage is capable of covering the property damage that an insured is sustaining, and the operator of the vehicle happens to have an insurance too.

Looking at the different coverage types, you would surely come to a point of realizing the value of a car insurance. But, before jumping into any of these insurance types, it is advisable for you to scout for auto insurance companies and ask for free auto insurance quotes to enable you to compare prices. This will save you time and money.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

PayPal New iPhone App Bumps Money

eBay's payPal division is best known for payment on the auction site, now the iPhone app upgrade has a new technology to exchange payments using a unique function.