We are living in the age of technology! It is the age where information has the power to topple governments, control economy, and much more than man has ever thought. In such an advance era, the use of hard cash for purchases is becoming obsolete with each passing day. More and more people are engaging with plastic money to make transactions for smaller amounts while using Internet as the medium to pay large amounts.

Thus, to tap this new breed of tech-savvy buyers, merchants will have to step forward in terms of technology. They have to fulfill the necessity of devices that are able to receive payments through mediums other than cash. Such a system would be best described as merchant account processing. One can classify the other mediums to make transactions as credit and debit cards, Internet payments, and payments through coupon codes. A trader has to arrange for the customer to make use of any such facilities to make a payment. This process is known as merchant account processing.

To realize this fanciful situation, three bodies are required; a bank/financial institution, an Internet processor, and the trader. Traders need to open special accounts with banks or any financial institution that has the capacity to hold and retain money for the merchant. Such accounts are known as merchant accounts. The bank in such a process has nothing to do with the processing part. Its sole function is to collect the cash from the trader for some time and return it to him as per the norms. For such purposes, banks charge fees from the trader, which is then levied on the customers availing the facility. 

The second most important role is a processor. They are specially trained people whose job is to make the transaction happen over the air. Since any transaction through plastic or Internet mode is directed through a central computer, such processors perform the job of directing the money from the card to the bank account. In the same process, it is expected that such bodies will also care about the privacy and security of the transaction.

Lastly, it is the trader who has to install specific devices at his place for full-fledged operation. In addition, traders have to file an application for the account with the bank. Merchant account processing has become extremely important for a business to lure the tech-savvy comfort loving generation, which is ready to pay ‘some extra’, for a comfortable shopping experience. 

Source by Mark Sands