Merchant Accounts

To process transactions from your website, you need to set up an internet merchant account with an acquiring bank.

What is a Merchant Account?

A merchant account is an agreement with a card acquiring bank that allows you to accept payment by credit and debit card. All the major high street banks can offer merchant accounts and it is separate from your normal business account. You can have an internet merchant account at a different bank from the one where your business account is located.

What type of Merchant Account do I need?

There are several types of merchant account available depending on how you want to accept card payments. To accept transactions over the Internet using either the eKashu Payment Page or CardEaseXML, you will need an internet merchant account.

To accept transactions via mail order or over the phone using CreditCall's Virtual Terminal, you will need a Cardholder Not Present (CNP) merchant account also known as Mail Order/Telephone Order (MOTO) merchant account.

Merchant Account Costs

All the banks have different requirements and fees. The rates they charge depends on factors such as how long your business has been established, what type of goods or services you sell and your turnover. These fees are set by the bank and are independent of CreditCall charges.

The bank will usually charge a merchant account set up fee, a percentage rate for credit card transactions and a flat ’per transaction’ fee for debit card transactions. As your online business grows it may be possible to negotiate a reduction in these charges.

Some banks offer improved rates if 3-D Secure is used (Verified by Visa and MasterCard SecureCode).