Credit Cards:

For most consumers Credit Cards remain the most convenient way of making purchases. This is especially true on-line as they are easy to use and are accepted internationally. The facility for your customers to pay on-line via Credit Card is therefore essential to the success of any e-commerce site.

Apache Solutions Ltd are 'Preferred Solution Providers' for NetBanx (the UK's leading provider of secure online payment solutions), enabling us to integrate their Credit/Debit Card payment services into our client's Web Sites. The NetBanx system supports all of the major card vendors such as Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Diners Club, Eurocard, JCB, Switch and Delta.

How it Works:

	At the point of payment the Web Site user is discretely re-directed into the secure environment of the NetBanx payment system where they are prompted to enter their Credit Card details.
	NetBanx checks the format of the card number and makes further security checks to validate the authenticity of the cardholder information. The transaction is then processed in real-time by requesting authorisation from the appropriate bank and the system then either obtains confirmation that the bank has cleared the payment, or rejected the transaction.
	The transaction will be rejected if the cardholder has insufficient funds in their account or if the card has been reported as lost or stolen. In either case the user is taken to a page that informs them that the the payment has been rejected and offers them the option to try again (in case they entered the card number incorrectly or they wish to use another card).
	If the transaction is accepted both the merchant and the customer are sent confirmation via email. The merchant then processes the delivery of the relevant goods or services.

Direct Merchant or Bureau?

If your business currently accepts payment by Credit or Debit Card then you will already have a direct merchant relationship with one of the acquiring banks. This relationship will not automatically confer the authorisation to take card payments over the Internet, however you may elect to obtain the authorisation to use your account with NetBanx by filling in a simple application form.

Businesses that do not already accept Credit or Debit cards will find it difficult to obtain a direct Merchant account with an acquiring bank, especially those without a significant trading history. Fortunately there is a solution to enable these businesses to join the party too - the NetBanx Bureau account.

Pricing:

The pricing structure is based upon a one-off set-up fee of £300 and a service charge based upon a processing fee for each successful transaction. There is no charge for unauthorised transactions, and unlike some PSP's NetBanx do not charge an annual fee. There is however a minimum monthly service charge of £20 (so if the processing fees for a given month amount to less than £20, you will be charged a minimum of £20).

The processing fee charged in a particular month is determined by the value of authorised transactions processed by NetBanx through the account. It varies from 1% to 4% of the transaction value for Direct Merchant accounts and 3.5% to 5% for Bureau accounts. For Merchant accounts the acquiring bank will also apply a merchant service charge (the level of which is a matter for the merchant to negotiate with the bank). For Bureau accounts this is included in the processing fee.

Direct Merchant Account
Threshold	£0 to £1,999.99	£2,000.00 to £4,999.99	£5,000 to £9,999.99	£10,000.00+
Processing charge	4%	3%	2%	1%

All prices shown are subject to VAT (Value Added Tax), currently at 17.5%

Further information:

Becoming a merchant requires responsibilities to both the card holders and the acquiring bank. The NetBanx CNP (Cardholder Not Present) guide introduces an understanding of relevant banking terminology as well as providing some commercial considerations for your business. You may download this document from here in Adobe Acrobat format:

Download as PDF		Download Adobe Acrobat Reader