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What is a Payment Gateway?

In the eCommerce world, the online payment gateway replaces the traditional physical point of sale terminal which exists at any physical store. The online payment gateway facilitates the secure flow of information, back and forth, between the merchant’s web site and the merchant’s processing bank.

Credit card transaction starts with a data flow that ends with a money flow. The shopper’s credit card details, collected online, need to be authorized by the shopper’s issuing bank. Few parties participate in this flow: merchant’s site, payment gateway, processing bank, credit card association and the issuing bank. Usually the full data flow (authorization process), back and forth, takes less than 3 seconds.

Only authorized transactions can be captured for payment. Actual payment is forwarded by the issuing bank, through the credit card association, to the acquiring (processing) bank, which deposits the funds directly into the merchant’s bank account. The money flow usually takes 2-3 business days. The payment gateway is only involved in the data flow and at no stage touches the money.

As online transactions occur without a physical presence of shopper or card, “CNP (Card not present) transactions” , fraud becomes somewhat easier to perform.
In order to maintain a safe eCommerce environment, the credit card associations developed a set of rules that regulates this CNP flow.

Every merchant is requested to take measures against potential fraud and needs to perform a set of checks in order to represent chargebacks. Different gateways offer a variety of tools to help merchants fight fraud over the net. Such tools include, among others: geo-location, AVS, velocity and other pattern analysis, CVV & VBV. When shopping for a payment gateway and comparing prices be sure to compare features as well…

Payment Gateway, Credit Card Processing

Payment Gateway

Authorize.Net
Get the Payment Gateway you just can't do without: all major card brnads supported, signature debit cards supported, batch upload, virtual terminal & fraud prevention. More on Authorize.Net
Dow Commerce
Lots of free features: shopping cart, recurring and automatic recurring billing, virtual terminal, batch processing, QuickBooks integration, fraud prevention tools and multi-user payment gateway access. More on Dow Commerce
1stPayGateway
From standalone payment gateway to a full merchant account solution. Endless shopping carts supported. Easy to integrate. Increases conversion. Shopper never leaves merchant's site! More on 1stPayGateway
Free Auth Net
The 'all in one' FreeAuthNet package gives you a free Authorize.Net payment gateway account plus a merchant account with CMS. Fraud prevention tools, risk management & low discount rates. More on Free Auth Net
Fast Charge
It's time to go online - get a payment gateway and connect your website to your mercahnt account. Benefit from a free shopping cart, free secured order page, free virtual terminal & free recurring billing. More on Fast Charge
VeloCT
All included: A FAST TRANSACT merchant account including a VeloCT payment gateway. Maximum flexibility: custom reporting, automatic mailing, robust searching, batch processing & fraud prevention. More on VeloCT
Beanstream
Simplicity! BeanStream payment gateway's integration is as easy as it gets. Features, on the other hand, are plenty. Simple to operate - sophisticated capabilities. More on Beanstream
Payment Express
Australian Payment Gateway developed by DPS, accepts merchants from: Australia, New Zeeland, The Far East, South Africa & the United Kingdom. Web sites, IVR, POS, & keyed in trans. More on Payment Express
Protx
A UK payment gateway for UK merchants. Simple fee structure with lots of free features. Sophisticated functions - easy to operate. Free of charge, unlimited, multi-currency enabled. More on Protx
gotoBilling
All in one business philosophy. gotoBilling combines all business activities into one software solution. This solution has a built in payment gateway. More on gotoBilling
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