Platinum Choice Bancard is a well-established merchant services provider. The company offers reliable and secure payment processing solutions to meet the needs of various business sizes. It is known for being a trusted partner for many businesses looking to simplify their payment processing systems.
Platinum Choice Bancard was founded in 2009 and has become a key player in the financial services industry. The company has its headquarters in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, a strategic location to serve clients across the United States. The leadership of CEO Gary Wishnia has helped the company to become a reliable merchant services provider.
The company’s registration as an Independent Sales Organization (ISO) with major financial institutions such as Synovus Bank, Fifth Third Bank, and Wells Fargo Bank highlights its credibility and solid industry standing. These partnerships allow Platinum Choice Bancard to provide financial services with the infrastructure and expertise of these established banks.
Platinum Choice Bancard’s commitment to customer satisfaction and its comprehensive suite of services have contributed to its growth and recognition in the industry. The company’s focus on innovation, security, and efficiency ensures that it continues to meet the evolving needs of its clients, helping businesses optimize their payment processing capabilities
Core Services Offered by Platinum Choice Bancard
Platinum Choice Bancard provides a comprehensive suite of payment processing solutions designed to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes. Their core services allow for efficient and secure transactions to help businesses maintain smooth operations.
Credit and Debit Card Processing: Platinum Choice Bancard provides strong services for processing credit and debit cards. These services cater to different types of cards, such as popular credit cards like Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover. The corporation guarantees quick and dependable processing of transactions, which is essential for upholding customer satisfaction and operational efficiency.
Point of Sale (POS) Systems: The company provides advanced POS systems tailored to different business needs. These systems are designed to streamline sales processes, manage inventory, and generate detailed sales reports. Platinum Choice Bancard’s POS solutions are user-friendly and equipped with the latest technology to ensure seamless integration with other business systems.
E-commerce Payment Solutions: Platinum Choice Bancard provides complete e-commerce payment solutions for businesses that are active on the internet. These solutions offer different online payment options, ensuring a safe and effective method for businesses to receive payments from customers around the world. The e-commerce solutions offered by the company include features such as fraud detection and prevention, guaranteeing the safety of online transactions.
Mobile Payment Options: To cater to the increasing demand for mobile payments, Platinum Choice Bancard offers mobile payment solutions that allow businesses to accept payments via smartphones and tablets. These solutions are ideal for businesses that operate on-the-go, such as food trucks, pop-up shops, and delivery services. The mobile payment options provided by Platinum Choice Bancard are secure and easy to use, enhancing the flexibility and convenience for both businesses and their customers.
Additional Services Offered by Platinum Choice Bancard
Platinum Choice Bancard goes beyond standard payment processing by offering a range of additional services that cater to the diverse financial needs of businesses. These services are designed to support business growth and streamline financial operations.
Cash Advances and Business Loans: Platinum Choice Bancard provides cash advances and business loans to help businesses manage their financial needs. These financial products offer quick access to capital, which can be used for various purposes such as expanding operations, purchasing inventory, or covering unexpected expenses. The flexibility and speed of these financing options make them an attractive choice for businesses needing immediate funds.
Check and ACH Payments: The company enables businesses to efficiently process electronic payments by offering check and ACH payment facilitation. These services allow businesses to receive payments from customers’ bank accounts, eliminating the reliance on paper checks and hastening the payment procedure. This is especially advantageous for regular payments and significant transactions.
B2B Level 2 and 3 Processing: For businesses dealing with corporate clients, Platinum Choice Bancard offers B2B Level 2 and 3 processing. These processing stages offer extra data collection functions for business transactions, including purchase order numbers and tax details, crucial for corporate accounting and adherence. This service enhances transaction transparency and accuracy, making it easier for businesses to manage their accounts.
Invoicing Solutions: Platinum Choice Bancard assists businesses in simplifying their billing procedures with their invoicing solutions. These options enable companies to generate and send electronic invoices, monitor payment statuses, and efficiently handle accounts receivable. Automating invoicing can lower administrative duties and enhance management of cash flow for businesses.
Gift Cards and Loyalty Programs: To help businesses attract and retain customers, Platinum Choice Bancard offers gift cards and loyalty programs. These programs enable businesses to reward loyal customers, encourage repeat business, and increase customer engagement. Gift cards provide a convenient purchasing option, while loyalty programs offer incentives that can enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Merchant Processing Solutions by Platinum Choice Bancard
Platinum Choice Bancard offers a suite of advanced merchant processing solutions designed to enhance payment efficiency, security, and customer satisfaction for businesses.
Recurring Billing: Platinum Choice Bancard’s recurring billing service allows businesses to automate regular payments from their customers. This feature is particularly valuable for businesses that offer subscription services, memberships, or installment plans. Automating these payments not only reduces administrative work but also ensures a consistent revenue stream, improving cash flow management and customer convenience.
Advanced Fraud Prevention Tools: Fraud prevention is crucial for businesses in today’s digital landscape. Platinum Choice Bancard integrates prevention tools into their payment processing solutions to tackle this concern. These tools use algorithms and machine learning techniques for fraud detection and prevention in real-time. The company helps businesses protect sensitive customer information for enhanced security and reliability.
Chargeback Prevention and Management: Chargebacks can be costly and time-consuming for businesses. Platinum Choice Bancard provides comprehensive chargeback prevention and management services to mitigate these issues. Their solutions include proactive monitoring, documentation support, and expert guidance to help businesses handle chargeback disputes effectively. By minimizing chargebacks, businesses can protect their revenue and maintain healthy customer relationships.
Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC): Platinum Choice Bancard offers Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC). It is beneficial for businesses that operate internationally or have a global customer base. Customers can use this feature to pay in their local currency, which helps improve the payment experience and transparency in currency exchange rates. DCC makes the transaction process simpler for international customers and allows businesses to expand their customer base and reach.
Fee and Pricing of Platinum Choice Bancard
Platinum Choice Bancard offers a fee and pricing structure that aims to be competitive in the market. However, businesses carefully review the detailed fee structure to understand all potential costs involved.
Transaction Fees: These fees typically range from 1.5% to 3.5% per transaction. It depends the type of card (credit or debit) and the transaction volume. Higher transaction volumes might qualify for lower rates.
Monthly Service Fees: The company charges a monthly service fee, which generally ranges from $10 to $50. This fee includes account maintenance, customer support, and access to the payment processing platform.
PCI Compliance Fees: Platinum Choice Bancard imposes PCI compliance fees for data security and compliance with industry standards. These fees can be around $79 to $150 annually.
Early Termination Fees: The early termination fee is a major concern, as it can go as high as $595. Businesses who terminate the contract before it ends have to pay this fee.
Equipment Lease Fees: Businesses that lease equipment such as POS terminals might incur additional monthly fees ranging from $20 to $50 per device.
Non-Compliance Fees: Businesses that don’t maintain PCI compliance have to pay additional non-compliance fees. This fee is typically around $19.95 per month.
Platinum Choice Bancard markets its services as cost-effective and provides strategies to reduce fees. However, businesses must review the contract and communicate with the sales representatives to know more about any additional charges. Doing this can help avoid unexpected expenses and ensure the pricing plans meet their financial expectations. The complete fee structure leads to better decision-making to prevent unforeseen costs and align with the budget of the business.
Contract Terms of Platinum Choice Bancard
Platinum Choice Bancard’s contract terms are a critical aspect for businesses to understand before committing to their services. The company typically offers contract lengths that range from one to three years, depending on the specific agreement and the services required. It is important for businesses to thoroughly review these terms to ensure they align with their operational needs and expectations.
Early Termination Fees: It is important to know about the early termination fee. Businesses that terminate the contract before the terms ends will have to pay an early termination fee, as high as $595. It covers the costs for ending contracts prematurely and is a financial burden for businesses who want to make changes.
Other Common Fees: In addition to early termination fees, businesses should be aware of other common fees associated with Platinum Choice Bancard’s services. These include PCI compliance fees, which can range from $79 to $150 annually. These fees are mandatory to ensure that businesses comply with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI-DSS) for safeguarding cardholder data.
It is important to consider non-compliance fees. Businesses that fail to maintain PCI compliance may be charged with non-compliance fees, which could be around $19.95 per month. It is a penalty for not following the necessary security standards and encourages businesses to comply to avoid paying an additional fee.
Data Security and Fraud Protection of Platinum Choice Bancard
Platinum Choice Bancard prioritizes data security and fraud protection, implementing multiple layers of security measures to safeguard sensitive information and ensure secure transactions.
PCI-DSS Compliance: Platinum Choice Bancard adheres to the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI-DSS), a comprehensive set of security requirements designed to protect cardholder data. Compliance with PCI-DSS involves maintaining a secure network, protecting cardholder data, implementing strong access control measures, regularly monitoring and testing networks, and maintaining an information security policy. This compliance ensures that businesses using their services are meeting the highest security standards.
Tokenization Technology: Tokenization is a critical security feature provided by Platinum Choice Bancard. It involves replacing sensitive card information with a unique identifier, or token, which is used for transaction processing. The actual card data is securely stored in the system, significantly reducing the risk of data breaches. By utilizing tokenization, businesses can ensure that even if tokenized data is intercepted, it cannot be used fraudulently.
EMV Chip Technology: To enhance the security of in-person transactions, Platinum Choice Bancard supports EMV (Europay, Mastercard, and Visa) chip technology. EMV chips generate unique transaction codes for each payment, making it extremely difficult for fraudsters to duplicate or clone card data. This technology is a significant upgrade over traditional magnetic stripe cards and provides an added layer of security against counterfeit fraud.
Advanced Fraud Prevention Tools: Platinum Choice Bancard integrates advanced fraud prevention tools into their payment processing solutions. These tools use sophisticated algorithms and machine learning to analyze transaction data in real time, identifying patterns and anomalies that may indicate fraudulent activity. By detecting and preventing fraudulent transactions before they occur, these tools help businesses protect their revenue and maintain customer trust.
Customer Support and Service of Platinum Choice Bancard
Platinum Choice Bancard’s customer support and service play a crucial role in its overall service offering. The company emphasizes availability and responsiveness to ensure that businesses can get the assistance they need promptly.
Availability and Responsiveness: Platinum Choice Bancard provides customer support through various channels, including phone, email, and live chat. Their support team is available during business hours to assist with any issues or questions that arise. Many customers appreciate the promptness and professionalism of the support team, noting that their concerns are addressed quickly and efficiently.
Common Customer Complaints: here are a few complaints from users, despite the positive feedback. Some customers have faced difficulties in reaching support during off-hours, which affects businesses that don’t operate during standard business hours. Another common complaint is about how complex it is to resolve billing issues and disputes. Users are also frustrated with the hidden fees and early termination fees, which aren’t mentioned clearly in the beginning.
Examples of Positive and Negative Customer Experiences: The positive experiences of users highlight the support staff’s helpfulness and knowledge, and their prompt and efficient resolution of technical issues with POS systems with guidance on the usage of various features of payment processing. However, the negative experiences of users involve the long resolution times for disputes and issues with the handling of billing errors. Some users have expressed frustration about miscommunications and lack of fee transparency.
Platinum Choice Bancard’s customer support is responsive and professional. However, potential users should be aware of common issues of fee transparency and off-hours support. Businesses must discuss all terms and conditions with the company to avoid any misunderstandings.
Pros and Cons of Platinum Choice Bancard
PROS
- Comprehensive payment processing solutions including credit and debit card processing, POS systems, e-commerce solutions, and mobile payment options.
- Additional services such as cash advances, business loans, check and ACH payments, B2B Level 2 and 3 processing, invoicing solutions, and gift cards and loyalty programs.
- PCI-DSS compliance ensures the highest standards of data security.
- Tokenization technology replaces sensitive card information with a secure token, reducing the risk of data breaches.
- EMV chip technology enhances the security of in-person transactions by generating unique transaction codes.
- Advanced fraud prevention tools that use sophisticated algorithms and machine learning to detect and prevent fraudulent activities in real-time.
CONS
- Customers have reported hidden fees such as early termination fees, which can be as high as $595.
- Additional charges like non-compliance fees and equipment lease fees may not be clearly disclosed upfront.
- Some customers have experienced difficulties reaching customer support during off-hours.
- Complaints about the complexity of resolving billing issues and disputes.
- Perceived lack of transparency in fee disclosures and miscommunications about charges.
Comparison with Industry Standards and Competitors:
- Compared to industry standards, Platinum Choice Bancard offers a competitive range of services and advanced security features, which are on par with leading payment processing providers.
- However, the presence of hidden fees and customer service challenges may put it at a disadvantage compared to competitors who offer more transparent pricing and better customer support experiences.
- Businesses considering Platinum Choice Bancard should weigh these factors and conduct thorough research to ensure that the services align with their needs and expectations.
Conclusion
Platinum Choice Bancard offers a variety of services and strong security features. However, the hidden fees and customer service are common issues. It is essential for businesses to research the merchant services provider to make a well-informed choice to make sure the terms and conditions align with their needs to avoid unexpected expenses.
