Merchant Acquiring Services FAQs
For Independent Sales Organizations (ISOs):
What is the first step in moving forward with an ISO program with Peoples Group?
The first step is to contact us to discuss your business opportunity. Next step is we will complete our business assessment and analyze the business case to develop a proposal.
What is the advantage of working with Peoples Group?
Peoples Group offers a BIN sponsorship model to accept Visa*, Mastercard ® and Interac ® and has certified several third party processors. Peoples Group third party processors can support a variety of products including Card Not Present (CNP), chip cards, contactless and a suite of terminal products.
How long has Peoples Group been in the market?
Peoples Group has been in business since 1985, and has been offering BIN Sponsorships to acquiring partners since 2010.
How does the Code of Conduct for the Credit and Debit Card Industry in Canada apply to ISOs?
As a participant in the payment card industry, ISOs, payment service providers, processors and acquirers must all follow the elements of the Code of Conduct. Compliance to the code is administered by the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC). For details of the Code of Conduct, please visit the FCAC website.
For Merchants:
What is the relationship between Peoples Group and its ISO partners?
Peoples Group is a registered Canadian financial institution that handles Card Issuing, Merchant Acquiring Services and manages the relationships with the Networks. Peoples Group works alongside Independent Sales Organizations (ISOs) to provide merchant acquiring and payment services to businesses. For each of our merchants, Peoples Group manages the transaction, and is responsible for settlement with Visa*, Mastercard and Interac, funding the merchant’s bank account, risk management, compliance and underwriting. All other acquiring and payment service functions, such as customer service, statements, hardware, any software, as well as back office functions such as chargebacks and underwriting are handled by the processor and ISO.
Can I set up a merchant services account with Peoples Group?
Peoples Group will refer you to one of our Independent Sales Organizations and Processing Partners to offer Visa*, Mastercard and Interac merchant services.
What is Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC)?
DCC is a service that enables international customers to pay for their purchases in their own currency when they use their Visa* or Mastercard credit card abroad. The advantage to Merchants is that they are able to reduce their cost of foreign card processing and provide a more personalized service to their customers, while continuing to be paid in their local currency.
What is the Code of Conduct for the Credit and Debit Card Industry in Canada?
The Code of Conduct is a set of rules that all participants in the payment card industry must follow and abide by. The purpose of the Code is to demonstrate the industry’s commitment to:
-
- Ensuring that merchants are fully aware of the costs associated with accepting credit and debit card payments thereby allowing merchants to reasonably forecast their monthly costs related to accepting such payments.
- Providing merchants with increased pricing flexibility to encourage consumers to choose the lowest-cost payment option.
- Allowing merchants to freely choose which payment options they will accept. Each payment industry participant (i.e. card brands, ISOs, processors etc) operate in accordance to this code. Compliance to the code is administered by the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC). For details of the Code of Conduct, please visit the FCAC website.
