High-Risk Credit Card Processor. The use of cash is declining each day, and the pandemic has given it a more gravitating effect. Business runs on the digital side of things, and companies need to have a powerful system holding up their finances and make the most out of their customer pool. Statistics showed that online purchases increased from 17% in 2019 to 24% in 2020
With that said, it’s not exactly easy for every company to find what readily comes to others. As soon as you fall into the high-risk category, you realize that banks and credit card processing services aren’t eager to work with you. Instead, to find your perfect premium high risk credit card processing company, all you need to do is your homework, and it will pay off.
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What Is a High-Risk Business?
While many things can make a business high-risk, it is mostly weighed by charge back ratio or payment processing history. To name a few, the adult, tobacco, alcohol, and even travel industries fall into this bracket. With the high number of charge backs, it’s crucial to analyze these industries and draw reports to ensure smooth running.
Nutraceuticals
The nutraceutical market is expected to grow 570 billion dollars in the next five years. There is a simple reason behind the growth of this market, and it’s the increased spread of information about the ingredients and their benefits. Wellness has now become a lifestyle. More and more people are seeking these specific ingredients that go into the body and provide numerous health benefits. It’s a rising trend to take better care of yourself, primarily your body and mind. And people love the nutraceutical market, as supplements are becoming extremely common.
But one of the biggest downfalls of the industry is the lack of government oversight. When these products are manufactured, there is no monitoring. If during the production something were to go wrong, no one can be held accountable. This sort of disability tends to scare banks away.
Another issue is that the claims they make can be just claims. If an appropriate disclaimer isn’t attached to the product, it can catch lawsuits left and right. Even the chargebacks tend to be high. All these reasons combined, banks tend to pass up nutraceutical companies for safer options.
Adult Entertainment
The adult entertainment industry provides a wide variety of services, including videos, photographs, and even escort services. Merchants in this field run a highly lucrative business when they abide by the regulations. But this industry is harmed because of its reputational risk.
Just like every other industry in this list, adult entertainment also has a high volume of transactions. Things can get complicated when we also consider the subscription-based system and how they tend to have no credit card processing history. Lastly, banks may just stay away from the adult industry because of the controversial content.
Subscription Services/Goods
It might sound simple enough, but subscription-based goods and services also come under the high-risk bracket. While some of the industries may sound taboo on this list, this can be the most surprising. And this is because of the misconception people tend to have that all high-risk businesses are ‘bad’ businesses.
One of the most significant setbacks of the subscription services and goods is the option to withdraw money from the customer’s bank account without giving them regular and persistent payment alerts. But this is what directly contributes to the increase of chargebacks. And high amounts of chargebacks make banks suspicious.
Kratom
While being new, Kratom has found its place in the world. The popularity of the product is rising every day. It’s known to alleviate body pain, stress, and symptoms of depression, among other things. Having so many different strains and types, it can be challenging to keep track of the high sales volume.
Just like the nutraceutical department, Kratom doesn’t promise to be a cure for anything. But it still has high claims and user testimonials to keep it running. But the efficacy of the product continues to stay in question due to the minimal research backing it up. And often, chargebacks happen because of low customer satisfaction as they expected more. This is why acquiring banks and payment processors flag it as high-risk.
Gaming
Also known as online gambling, the gaming industry has stayed extremely profitable over the years. This includes casinos, sports wagering, online poker, online bingo, and mobile gaming. Most gaming companies are based offshore and have seen many instances of fraud and money laundering.
It is an extremely high volume business, and managing the revenue can be problematic and often seen as risky by the banks. Owners of these businesses tend to be new with no credit line, which automatically brings them down on the banks’ list. The gaming businesses struggle because it’s often at punishing charges when they are offered high-risk merchant accounts.
Airline
Airline services have become a part of almost every individual’s life. With a click of a button, you can decide to go from one corner of the world to another. And with digital advancements, it’s been made possible to book millions of flight tickets simultaneously. But it’s not a great thing from all angles. One of them being the high volume of ticket sales.
Airlines also tend to be vulnerable to chargebacks, and more importantly, it deals with many different currencies. That can easily be seen as a daunting task for banks and credit card processors.
Tobacco/ Vape/ E-cigs
Being one of the oldest and longest-running on this list, the use of tobacco might have been around for a long time, but now companies are struggling to manage their finances. The business produces high revenue, but its illegality in aspects like underaged sales makes banks think twice before taking them on.
The various health risks that are included with using tobacco products also come into play here. This solely might impact the banks’ working history with clients and force them not to consider you.
Takeaway
While looking for an excellent high-risk credit card processor, there are some things you should keep in mind. Security for a high-risk company is the most critical pillar. Expertise in their designated field and experience with high-risk companies will make sure you are handled smoothly and without bumps along the way. In the end, you just want to partner with a credit card processor that wants to grow with you instead of taking advantage of you.