 Could Someone Open a Merchant Account in Your Company’s Name? Why Should You Care?
Most business owners know they need to protect themselves from credit card fraud, phishing emails, and stolen passwords. But there is another type of fraud that deserves attention: Someone stealing your business identity and using it to open a credit card processing account. We are seeing this as a growing trend. Fraudsters may obtain publicly available business information along with stolen or falsified personal information and attempt to establish a merchant processing account in the name of a legitimate business. Once approved, that account could potentially be used to process fraudulent transactions—while appearing to be associated with you and your company. How Can This Happen? A surprising amount of information about a business can be found online or through public records, including:
They can then attempt to open merchant processing accounts, bank accounts, credit accounts, or other financial services in the company's name. The Consequences Can Affect Your Legitimate Merchant Account This is where business identity theft can become particularly serious. If a fraudulent merchant account opened using your identity generates excessive fraud, chargebacks, or other prohibited activity, information associated with that account could potentially be reported to the Mastercard MATCH system. MATCH is a database used by acquiring banks and payment processors to identify merchants and certain associated individuals that have been terminated for specified reasons. Being associated with a MATCH listing can make obtaining or maintaining merchant processing services extremely difficult. In some circumstances, identity theft involving a fraudulent merchant account could create problems for your legitimate credit card processing account as well. You could find yourself having to prove that you had nothing to do with an account you never opened. That is why business identity theft should be taken seriously and addressed as quickly as possible. Warning Signs to Watch For Pay attention if you receive:
Don't assume an unexpected notice is simply a mistake. Investigate it. Consider Freezing Your Personal Credit One important step business owners can take is to freeze their personal credit reports with the three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. A credit freeze is free and can make it more difficult for an identity thief to open new credit accounts using your personal information. When you legitimately need someone to access your credit, you can temporarily lift the freeze and then put it back in place afterward. A credit freeze will not prevent every type of business identity theft or guarantee that someone cannot attempt to establish a fraudulent merchant account. However, it provides another important layer of protection for your identity. Protect Your Business Treat your business information with the same care you give your personal financial information. Be cautious about emailing driver's licenses, Social Security numbers, bank statements, and checks unless you know exactly who is receiving them and why. Use strong, unique passwords and multi-factor authentication whenever available. Periodically review your business bank accounts and business credit reports for unfamiliar activity. Consider keeping your personal credit frozen when you are not actively applying for credit. If someone contacts you claiming to represent your credit card processor, bank, POS provider, or another financial company, don't automatically provide information. Verify the person independently using a phone number or contact you already trust. If You Discover an Account You Didn't Open — Act Quickly If you learn that someone may have opened a merchant processing account using your identity or business information, don't ignore it. Contact your legitimate merchant services provider, financial institutions, and the company associated with the fraudulent account as soon as possible. Document everything, including dates, names, emails, letters, and phone conversations. You may also need to file an identity theft report and take additional steps to establish that the account was fraudulent. The longer a fraudulent account operates, the greater the potential damage can become. PROTECT MORE THAN YOUR MONEY — PROTECT YOUR BUSINESS IDENTITY Business identity theft can affect much more than your bank account. A criminal using your identity could potentially damage your credit, your company's reputation, and even your ability to accept credit cards through your legitimate business. Protect your business name. Protect your personal credit. Protect your banking information. Protect your ability to accept payments. Reach out to us, if you have questions. We are here to help your business. Call First Coast Payments 904-638-8804
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As a business owner, you receive monthly statements from just about every company you do business with—or at least they're available online. The question is... Do you ever take a few minutes to look at them? When it comes to your credit card processing statement, it's one of the most important statements you receive each month. Unfortunately, some processors don't make it easy to find. In fact, sometimes it almost seems like they'd rather you didn't read it. Why is it important? Because your monthly statement is often where processors notify you of new fees, fee increases, pricing changes, and other updates to your account. If you don't read it, you may never realize your costs have increased. A Recent Example If your processor is Global Payments, Heartland, or Worldpay, you may want to take a closer look at your latest statement.    Over the past year, these companies have introduced several new fees under different names, including:
Different names... the same result: Higher processing costs. Many of these notices are buried within the monthly statement, making them easy to overlook while you're busy running your business. The Real Question It's not whether a processor has the right to change pricing—many processing agreements allow for fee changes with proper notice. The real question is: Do you know what you're actually paying? I've found that most business owners know the rate they were originally quoted, but very few know their true effective processing rate after all the monthly, annual, and miscellaneous fees are added. I'd Be Happy to Help As a Certified Payments Professional (CPP) with more than 20 years in the payments industry, I offer a complimentary statement review. I'll show you:
There is no obligation—just an honest review from someone who believes business owners deserve to understand exactly what they're paying. We are here to help your business your business. Call First Coast Payments 904-638-8804 Ray Harrington Certified Payments Professional (CPP) "The question isn't whether you're paying processing fees... it's whether you're paying more than you should." If you’ve ever logged into your bank account and seen money withdrawn due to a customer dispute, your first reaction was probably:
“Why are they taking my money? I did the work!” It’s a fair question. Let’s break down what’s actually happening — and why this is part of the credit card system. First: What Is a Dispute? A dispute (also called a chargeback) happens when a customer contacts their bank and questions a transaction. Important: They don’t call you. They don’t call your processor. They call their card-issuing bank. That bank then follows rules established by the major card networks:
Why Is the Money Immediately Pulled From the Merchant? When a cardholder files a dispute, the issuing bank is required to:
It is not a fine. It is not an assumption that you did anything wrong. It is simply how the system is structured. The credit card ecosystem is designed to protect consumer confidence. The rulebook requires that funds be provisionally returned to the cardholder first — while the case is reviewed. How the Money Moves Here’s what most merchants never see behind the scenes: Customer → Issuing Bank → Card Network → Acquiring Bank → Merchant If the original transaction has already been deposited into your business account, the system reverses it while the investigation is pending. Think of it like temporary escrow during a disagreement. Are You Automatically Guilty? No. You have the right to respond. This is called representment — submitting documentation to prove the charge was valid. Winning disputes comes down to documentation:
Why Do Banks Structure It This Way? The card networks operate on global regulations. Their priority is maintaining trust in the payment system. If cardholders didn’t feel protected, usage would decline — and the entire system would weaken. So the structure favors:
The Bigger Picture Disputes are part of accepting credit cards — just like interchange fees or PCI compliance. The goal is not eliminating them entirely (which is unrealistic). The goal is:
Final Thoughts If you accept cards, you operate under the rules of the card brands. That includes how disputes are processed. The temporary debit is part of the process — not a punishment. The real difference-maker is how well you respond. If you are feeling you are on an “island” when there is a dispute, we offer enhanced dispute alerts and hands-on assistance with responses. In our industry, “service” gets thrown around a lot. For us service means knowing your merchants by their first name. It means answering the phone without layers of verification. It means helping when things get uncomfortable — especially during chargebacks! We are here to help your business your business. Call First Coast Payments at 904-638-8804  When you partner with an ETA Certified Payments Professional (CPP), you’re choosing more than just a payments provider — you're choosing someone who is qualified, ethical, and committed to helping your business thrive.
A CPP is recognized by the Electronic Transactions Association (ETA) as a professional who: ✅ Has a minimum of 1–3 years of experience in the payments industry ✅ Has passed a rigorous, third-party exam developed by industry experts ✅ Has been recommended by a supervisor or industry leader ✅ Abides by a strict code of conduct ✅ Completes continuing education to stay up to date every 3 years What That Means for You By working with a CPP, you can trust that you're getting expert advice, transparent solutions, and a long-term partner who puts your business first. Ray is here to help your business. Call First Coast Payments at 904-638-8804 today!  A charge back / dispute is when a card holder contacts their bank to file a claim to have their funds returned on a credit card or debit card transactions. Why might a customer dispute a charge? Fraudulent activity, Dissatisfaction with a product or service, Errors made by the business, Unauthorized transactions, and Nondelivered of goods or services. What are the consequences for businesses? Chargebacks can result in financial losses, damage to reputation, and higher fees from payment processors. Have you had a charge back yet? If not, statistically it a matter of time. According to data found in Chargebacks911’s annual Cardholder Dispute Index, in the United States alone, cardholders on average disputed about six transactions throughout 2023. This means an astounding $65.21 billion worth of transactions were overturned through chargebacks. When you factor in Visa’s report that up to 75 percent of all chargebacks are a form of chargeback abuse or misuse—commonly known as “friendly fraud”—and that each dollar lost to friendly fraud costs merchants more than three times the transaction value in fees, fines and lost merchandise, according to LexisNexis, this means that U.S. merchants lost more than $183 billion last year to illegitimate chargebacks. Also, the Merchant Risk Council issued a critical alert regarding a surge in organized chargeback abuse, meaning that methods to game the chargeback system are becoming widespread and more malicious. With retailers only winning 18 percent of their chargeback representation cases and cardholders facing essentially zero consequences, the problem is approaching uncontrollable levels. A business cannot stop a cardholder from initiating a charge back / dispute. What you can do is always keep good records of all transactions, invoices and the terms of your sale. In other words what records do you have if you need to “defend” the transaction? Make it your standard operating procedure that every transaction will be disputed and you have the records available. A good resource to refer to is: Dispute Best Practices Guide October 2024 We are here to help your business by helping you flight disputes. In addition, by giving you competitive rates and great service. Give us a call at First Coast Payments 904-638-8804 
 5 million US Credit Cards Leaked Online
https://www.malwarebytes.com/blog/news/2024/12/5-million-payment-card-details-stolen-in-painful-reminder-to-monitor-christmas-spending?utm_source=iterable&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=b2c_pro_oth_20241223_decemberweeklynewsletter_paid_v4_1_173452521105&utm_content=Card_details_stolen I read headlines like this and I see it from a different perspective. Most read these headlines and think, as a consumer, how their cards might be exposed in a data breach. That is not a problem for consumers as most fraudulent charges on a credit card is covered by the bank or issuer. Any fraudulent charges taken by a merchant may be liable in most situation. This is why as a merchant it is so important not to let your guard down. The fraudster is looking for cash and always searching for the weak link in the system. Here are few things to be aware of: If you are a retail business and need to manually enter a card there are certain rules you must follow. If your account is a card not present account, always input the billing address, zip card, and the CVV at the time of sale. Look for the response to see if all the info matches. This helps to prevent fraud and helps should there be a dispute due to fraud. Be suspicious of large orders that are shipped to an out-of-town address. Many times, it could be fraud and a stolen credit card involved. Just because there is an approval is no guarantee it is legit. For a retail business that accepts cards in person, if a CHIP Card will not read, ask the customer for another form of payment. There is more info. Now is a good time to revisit this post about protecting your business against disputes. Click the link: https://www.firstcoastpayments.com/blog/chargebacks-disputes-rising We are here to help you should you have questions about disputes/chargebacks and anything related to Point Of Sale systems or credit card processing solutions. Give us a call at 904-638-8804.  Ever wonder why gas stations list prices with a "point" typically ending in 9/10 of a cent? It is a practice that goes back to the early 1900s when adding even a single penny to the price of gas seemed like a significant increase due to lower overall gas costs at the time. It's a marketing tactic that makes prices appear slightly cheaper to consumers, creating a psychological perception of a better deal compared to a whole number price.
How does this relate to credit card processing cost? There are many companies in this industry that may only tell you what you want to hear, instead of giving you the truth. They might mention a very low rate of 1.25% cost to accept credit cards, however not mention the other fees. Like, transaction fees, annual fees and termination fees, just to name a few. To really see ALL of the cost you need to look at the monthly processing statement. To see the statement can take a lot of effort by requesting a login to a portal and the effort of login monthly. Many time the statements can be hard to understand. Just like gas stations marketing tactic, this is a way to keep the info difficult hard to view. As it is stated, “Out of sight, out of mind”. We are here to help your business and earn your business and keep your business! By giving you great rates and service, you win and we win. We are here for the long haul. If you want transparent info and at your finger tips every month, give us a call at First Coast Payments! 904-638-8804 It is important to know the severity about using your account to process a transaction for a friend. What do I mean by this? So, let's say you have a friend John that owns a roofing business. John does not have his own merchant account; he calls you up you and ask if you can take a credit card payment for him as a favor. Seems like a win / win situation. You help your friend out and your friend John can take a card from his customer. We all want to be good people in general and want to help our friends out when we can.
Not every situation will be exactly like how I'm describing but you must know that this is considered a form of money laundering. You can lose your services per the card brands and any future processing services you may inquire about in the future with another company. It could also cause issues with the IRS; these are just some of the worst-case scenarios and we want you to be informed. At First Coast Payments we are here to help you should you have questions about this post or anything related to Point-of-Sale systems or credit card processing solutions. Give us a call at 904-638-8804!  Although I work in the payment industry, I too am a consumer of goods and services like everyone else. Since I work in the payments industry, I notice things that the average consumer may not notice.
I am beginning to notice is many businesses have not adapted to the new Visa Rules when a fee is added to a card transaction. In April 2023, Visa made changes to their compliant Surcharging regulations. Non complaint programs using the non-cash adjustment, service fee or some other line-item fee on the credit card receipt will be considered non- compliant Surcharging and may cause a business to be subject to fines by Visa and Mastercard.
If your business charges a cardholder a fee to use a credit card or debit card and your terminal receipts show a fee you may not be compliant with the new rules. Visa is being very aggressive in seeking out businesses that are not in compliant and assessing penalties. This is being accomplished with secret shopper programs and consumer complaints. If your current company has not updated your terminal or your Point of Sale to adhere to the new rules, you should give us a call so we can help you become and stay in are in compliance. At First Coast Payments we are here to help you should you have questions this post or anything related to Point-of-Sale systems or credit card processing solutions. Give us a call at 904-638-8804  You press the 'pay' button, and within a couple of seconds, you receive an order confirmation. It’s a success! That’s the typical way most consumers perceive credit card transactions — essentially, they don’t really think about them at all. Whether it's an in-store, online, unattended, or embedded payment, the behind-the-scenes operations are inconsequential as long as it's simple and functional.
Here is an insight of the journey that a customer's card information, personal data, and funds traverse every time a purchase is made. In the end you will have a better understanding of how credit card payments function and how to enhance the purchasing experience for your customers. The General Path of a Credit Card Payment We'll commence with a broad overview of the processing steps and gradually delve into the details as we progress through the process. Every credit card transaction generally undergoes five primary steps: submission, authorization, authentication, clearing, and settlement. The interface for most consumers is a terminal, point of sale or a payment gateway is like a secret helper during card transactions, handling sensitive card information and sending it to banks for approval. It's crucial for both online and in-store payments. The interface doesn’t just send data—it also protects it. It uses encryption to secure the information. Sometimes, extra security steps like 3DSecure are required before the transaction goes through. Once secured, the interface sends the data to the acquiring bank, the card network, and the customer’s issuing bank. The acquiring bank is the merchant's link, the card network helps with rules and authorization, and the issuing bank evaluates and approves the transaction. It is worth noting that just because there is an approval does not guarantee the card is not fraudulent. Finally, the issuing bank checks for available credit and approves or denies the transaction. The decision is then sent back through the network, and the process, from submission to approval, usually takes seconds. However, for the merchant and the banks, approval isn't the final step. Clearing: Initiating the Movement of Funds The initial stages determine if a transaction can proceed without any exchange of money occurring yet. The movement of funds happens in a separate process, starting when the merchant sends the accepted transaction for clearance. Clearing involves the three parties—acquiring bank, card network, and issuing bank. It begins with merchants batching transactions together for submission. Typically, they send these batches once a day after business hours. These batches are sent to the acquiring bank or payment processors. They can contain hundreds or thousands of transactions, which need to reach the right issuing banks for settlement. To manage this, the acquirer sends the batch to the card network, which sorts and routes each transaction to the respective bank for the final settlement. Settlement: Funds Deposited in the Bank Settlement involves the issuing bank deducting the amount from the cardholder's available credit and sending it to the card network, which transfers the funds to the acquirer. The acquirer then deposits the funds into the seller's merchant account, known as funding or settlement. Unlike authorization that happens in seconds, clearing and funding usually take longer—around two to three business days. This delay, a standard hold in the industry, serves as an extra safety measure to prevent fraud and ensure financial security. While a standard two-day delay is common, some payment processors offer faster funding services, granting brief credit to merchants until the settlement is complete. In Summary The entire payment process involves numerous intricate steps, often without a second thought by most consumers. However, when examined in detail, it's fascinating to comprehend the complexities behind the scenes of processing transactions when one realizes this takes place around 1.86 billion credit card transactions daily. At First Coast Payments , our dedication lies in ensuring that a business will take payments quickly and smoothly so they can focus on their customers. We provide with seamless, cost-effective, and transparent payments, while the business will maximize payment revenues. We are here to help you should you have questions this post or anything related to Point-of-Sale systems or credit card processing solutions. Call First Coast Payments at 904-638-8804! |
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Credit Card Processing for small to mid-size businesses. We eliminate the junk fees.
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Serving Northeast Florida, including Jacksonville, Fernandina Beach, Yulee, and beyond.
Admin | Privacy
Site powered by eCoalitions.net
First Coast Payments is a registered agent office for several ISO/MSP. Disclosure.
© 2025 First Coast Payments. All Rights Reserved.