Headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida, PayKings is a merchant service provider with expertise in catering to high-risk businesses facing difficulties finding merchant accounts. The company was established in 2011 and partnered with multiple payment processors to serve various industries, including adult, CBD, firearm, dating, debt collection, cigars, e-cigarettes and vapes, pawnshops, travel, gaming, sports betting, and credit repair. The provider specializes in customized payment solutions for several B2B, e-commerce, and off-shore businesses. Here is a complete PayKings review based on various crucial parameters.
Regardless of the business type, merchants require comprehensive solutions that meet all their expectations, helping them stand apart in this ever-expanding market. High-risk companies are generally bound by conservative policies and inadequate assistance and are forced to pay expensive rates for basic facilities. PayKings claims to understand merchants’ unique needs and accommodate them with the equipment and services required to run a high-maintenance company.
The provider is a registered ISO/MSP of Woodforest National Bank, a financial service provider for high-risk companies. Signature Payments acquired PayKings in 2022 and continued facilitating medium-sized merchant accounts for most businesses. It offers on-site terminals, efficient payment gateways, and PCI-compliant virtual terminals for businesses to grow in a secure environment. Here is a PayKings review comprising its services and shortcomings for merchants to determine if the provider is a better fit for their company.
PayKings Review Based on Features and Services
PayKings accepts all major credit card brands and offers contactless NFC, credit card terminals, mobile SDK, and POS equipment. The provider supports e-check, ACH, and EMV processing and provides third-party processor and shopping cart integration, payment monitoring, data analysis, and multiple billing options. PayKings enables merchants to meet global standards with chargeback alerts, tokenization, PCI certification, and fraud prevention tools. It ensures keeping their businesses secure and scam-free.
Payment Gateway
High-risk businesses require a well-matched gateway that can handle high-volume transactions and work in sync with their website. The provider has partnered with multiple companies, including Authorize.net, Shopify, NMI, WooCommerce, and X-Cart, to facilitate customized payment gateways for each business. These payment gateways are adorned with currency conversion features, allowing merchants to accept payments anywhere and offer smartphone and desktop compatibility to carry out online transactions regardless of their device.
According to PayKings reviews, the provider’s payment gateways allow merchants to transfer transaction data to Quickbooks and organize it without storing it on their computers. Furthermore, the gateways are PCI DSS compliant and competent enough to accommodate credit card transactions while meeting international security standards. The 3D secure feature reduces fraud and boosts customer confidence by providing passcode-protected transactions.
Payment Terminals
The provider offers traditional and virtual terminals to provide equal opportunities to online and brick-and-mortar businesses. It supports EMV payments with a secure USB smart terminal by allowing merchants to convert their desktop computers into an EMV-enabled POS terminal. These terminals come with a signature capture feature that eliminates the chances of fraudulent transactions and saves time.
Moreover, merchants are offered the convenience of accepting payments on their smartphones with iPS enterprise encrypted mobile reader. PayKings facilitates an android and iOS-compatible app to grant complete control over each payment processing step to its merchants.
Recurring Billing
The recurring billing option is especially favorable for e-commerce businesses selling subscription-based services. However, businesses running on a recurring billing model are challenged by various hurdles in accepting payments through an average payment processor. High credit card chargebacks can strain the approval process or even get the merchant account shut down by the processor.
PayKings reviews hint that the company is an expert in high-risk recurring billing merchant accounts. It offers customized pricing tiers for merchants to choose the payment schedule and decide when the customers will be charged. They can grant membership or subscription-based payment options, grow customer retention, and optimize their checkout experience. The provider automatically updates an expired account to ensure the elimination of lost or declined sales.
Mobile Payment Processing
E-commerce merchants are offered mobile payment and SDK solutions to enhance the experience for both the merchant and the customer. Merchants can accept credit card or check payments on their smartphones while controlling the process over an app and providing ease to their customers. PayKings offers a mobile gateway app and allows customers to pay with a mobile wallet.
With user-friendly mobile SDK solutions, merchants can create a new app for their business or develop the existing one compatible with android and iOS. They can customize the appearance of the app and control its usage. The company’s SDK solutions are PCI compliant, provide account management and data reporting, and enable merchants to send email receipts to customers. Merchants can accept payments anywhere without storing credit card data on their devices, reducing compromised data risk.
PayKings Review Based on Contract Terms and Pricing
PayKings reviews suggest that it offers a tiered pricing model with variable contract terms depending on the business type, processing history, and the bank paired with the merchant account. The provider grants long-term contracts with varying early termination fees ranging from $300 to $500. Tiered pricing is unfavorable as it provides low rates for some transactions while charging high rates for the rest. Merchants are advised to request interchange pricing.
The company does not provide details about its pricing as it varies from client to client. However, the high-risk merchant account rate mentioned on the official website is 2.49% to 4.99%. The company’s average transaction fee for swiped and keyed-in payments is 1.00% to 4.99%, and there is no application, account setup, or gateway setup fee. Reviews portray that the provider binds merchants in non-cancellable, long-term equipment leases and offers different interchange rates for level 2 and level 3 processing for B2B and B2G transactions.
PayKings Review Based on Customer Support
PayKings reviews show that the company has reserved a domestic phone support number and an email address for merchants to address their concerns. The provider has dedicated social media accounts on multiple platforms, and the designated account manager assists each merchant throughout the process. Moreover, these representatives are individually assigned to high-risk businesses to answer any raised queries in the future.
PayKings Review Based on Sales and Advertisement
The provider hires independent sales representatives to market its services, a common practice among merchant service providers. The company discloses minimal information regarding its rates and claims low rates for high-risk merchant accounts. PayKings review claims that the provider displays such quotes to attract merchants, and its rates differ from what it mentions. However, it is habitual for high-risk payment processors to provide very scarce information as it is difficult for them to disclose exact pricing because of the nature of their business.
PayKings Reviews and Complaints
There are a few complaints cited on the review platforms, and merchants have not filed any FTC reports or class-action lawsuits against the provider. The low complaint total suggests that the company operates ethically and has a positive reputation. However, the few complaints posted online are serious, and their tone cannot be ignored. The most common themes behind negative reviews are below-average sales experience, high rates, unclear instructions, rejected applications, and funds withholding.
Better Business Bureau has not accredited the provider, and there are no formal complaints against it on the BBB profile. In several informal reviews, merchants portray that the company forces unsatisfactory deals on them. Furthermore, PayKings faces poor ratings on multiple sites, including Google, Yelp, and Facebook.
Drawbacks
The provider offers reliable services and a range of equipment and apps to accommodate high-risk businesses. Merchants are provided with comprehensive solutions and fairly decent customer support. However, the company has a few shortcomings that merchants must be aware of.
Undisclosed Pricing and Variable Contract Terms
The company does not provide stable rates, and its pricing and contract terms depend on the business’s risk profile. Even though it is a fair deal, it causes uncertainty and unreliability for merchants. The provider can justify unfair rates and conditions by giving illogical reasoning and blaming it on a random business factor. Since merchants have no way of knowing the pricing beforehand, they are stuck in an unsuitable agreement.
Misleading Quotes
The company has mentioned low rates (2.49%) for high-risk businesses, but multiple PayKings reviews accuse the company of displaying false quotes. The company’s rates are much higher than it claims to offer, which seems to be a marketing tactic to attract merchants. The provider disclaims that its high-risk rate quotes are not qualified.
Funds Withholding
Merchants have shown concern over PayKings fund withholding policies and have complained that the provider forces them to turn in a large chunk of their funds and keeps cash reserves for the first six months of the contract. This policy causes merchants to lose a percentage of their money for a long time which can be an expensive bargain for most businesses. Merchants may lose various investment opportunities and the chance of generating additional profits.
Final Verdict
This PayKings review concludes that the company is a reasonable service provider under specific circumstances but is not ideal for businesses that cannot handle fluctuating rates and variable contract terms. The company displays lower rates than it charges, which confuses merchants and causes inconvenience. Its strict fund withholding and non-cancelable equipment lease policies indicate that the provider uses irrational tactics to bind businesses in its long-term contract.
Merchants are advised to find a better-suited payment processor that offers price transparency and straightforward contract terms that anyone can rely on.
