Any area which makes and receives telephone calls within a business or other organization. Call centers can be complex separate facilities from a normal business or may physically…
In today’s economy much of our daily business is transacted electronically. Consequently, payment for these products, goods, and services is also made electronically with credit…
The Capture is one of the legal steps during credit card processing. Usually, this is somewhat hidden behind-the-scenes and not discussed unless there are problems with the…
Dates are important for record-keeping purposes to identify when funds were transferred from one account to another. The Capture Date is also an essential part of credit card…
A card base refers to all of the individuals linked to a particular credit card account. It is important for the merchant account to be aware of this common practice with credit…
The entity which issues a card to a cardholder. Card issues authorize bankcards to be issued to consumers, businesses and other organizations while retaining the control and…
A synonym for PAN prefix.
A new authentication programs in which account holders can initiate Internet transactions with a PIN number and a STAR Card. This authentication program allows an easy and…
The three-digit code on the back of a MasterCard, used for authentication purposes. Other bankcard companies may provide verification codes with a different number of digits or the…
A value encoded on a Visa’s magnetic strip or the three-digit code on the back of a Visa, also known as CVV2. Used to authenticate a bankcard during a purchase.
Any person who legally holds and uses a bankcard issued by a financial institution.
A bank which issues a credit or debit card to an individual or other entity.
Another term for a chargeback. See “chargeback” for more information.
Traditionally, banking was primarily local with very tight-knit rules to ensure that the process was safe and secure. Over time, banking has become global, as exemplified by the…
Cash that can be advanced to a bankcard holder, usually through an ATM or a bank. A cash advance counts against the line of credit of the cardholder and may carry heavier charges…
A feature on bankcards that returns a portion of the cost of a purchase to a cardholder.
Any purchase with a greater total amount than the cost of products or services by a cardholder. The cardholder receives money back from the transaction as a result of overpaying.
An organization or business which establishes the validity of private keys and digital signatures on a website or within a data packet and issues a certificate. Certificate…
Awarded to a member or a processor after its interface to a STAR switch has been successfully tested, indicating that all technical specifications have been met. Transactions can…
Refers to all of a merchant’s locations. These locations are typically managed by the merchant who owns them.
The second STAR transaction after a successfully completed initial transaction, as well as each additional transaction immediately following the first. Chained transactions are…
A fee assessed on an authorized transaction. A charge per transaction is instated to cover the costs of a transaction’s authorization.
The act of challenging a transaction. A cardholder initiates a chargeback through a merchant bank, at which point the chargeback may go to arbitration in order to be resolved.
A set period in which a chargeback can be initiated. Chargeback periods vary by type of transaction. Most chargeback periods are somewhere around 45-180 calendar days.
A code used by a credit card company to indicate the reason for chargeback. Chargeback reason codes are not the same from one credit card company to the next.
A special 10-digit number used in chargebacks to reference an individual chargeback. Each 10-digit code consists of an identifying number for the issuer and several unique digits,…
A form of processing that is completely paper-based. Billers receive a single check with multiple payments. This is normally accompanied by a list of represented payments.
Another term for a debit card. This allows access to a checking account or another asset account. Check cards can generally be used in the same manner as credit cards, except the…
A guarantee from a third-party entity on a check payment from a customer. Merchants must follow certain authorization procedures in order for a check guarantee to apply, and other…
A service which verifies that a customer has no outstanding check complaints. The service can be used by merchants and connects to a national database to find negative files. A…
A specialized system in which customers can relay check information for processing to a merchant. When a check by phone is processed, an electronic check is usually created for…
A small semiconductor used in computers and other electrical products.
Another term for Smart Card.
The successful exchange of transaction details between a card issuer and an acquirer.
The account that receives a member’s debit or credit for a settlement. Clearing accounts are held by a clearing bank.
A bank which handles transfers between a member and a net settlement bank and holds the clearing account of the member. The clearing bank also handles the member’s net settlement…
A unique number which allows for various types of transactions, including electronic cash register, direct solutions and electronic draft capture. Client reference numbers are…
A specialized credit card system which differs greatly from systems like Visa and MasterCard, as the organization which issues bankcards is the same organization which acquires…
Bank cards issued by a merchant and a member bank. Co-branded cards get their name from the dual brands shown on the card.
A procedure in which a challenging member provides proof of financial loss due to violation of a credit card company’s rules. It differs from a chargeback in that no chargeback…
A bank, credit union, third-party provider or another institution which handles payment data and remittance data for a customer.
A number that guarantees a reservation. Typically used in industries associated with reservations, including the hotel industry.
In computing, a condition in which traffic overloads a communication path’s capacity for bandwidth. Congestion results in poor website performance and/or complete inaccessibility.
A system for accessing the STAR Northeast Switch Platform, used by members to contact directory information and to access or submit exception items.
A BSP or bill service provider which presents a consolidated group of bills to a customer service provider. Consolidators collect bills, which can allow for easier presentation for…
Fees charged to a STAR Cardholder for certain STAR transactions at an acquirer member’s eligible terminal. Convenience fees refer specifically to fees from an acquirer member to a…
A term used to describe a cardholder who pays his or her balance in full on or before each payment due date.
Another term for a business card. Corporate cards are issued to a company’s employees.
A bank which provides various banking services for other banks. Correspondent banks are often used to accept deposits and are commonly used by banks across the United States.
A fraudulent card. Many methods exist for creating counterfeit cards. In some cases, working or expired cards are fraudulently re-printed to create a counterfeit card, and in other…
Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer…
Any account in which a line of credit is advanced for purchases or cash. Credit accounts usually have a set interest rate and a set of terms related to the payback of the credited…
A plastic card linked to a credit account used for purchases and cash advances. Credit cards are a type of bankcard but differ from debit cards, which are typically linked to the…
Another term for a deposit credit. A credit deposit is a credit to a merchant’s bank account after the merchant’s sales slips are purchased by an acquiring bank. Deposits are…
Any exception or transaction which increases a deposit account. A credit item also decreases a credit account simultaneously.
A limit on the amount a credit holder can owe. Credit limits can increase or decrease depending on the cardholder’s activities.
An amount lost on account as a direct result of a cardholder’s failure to repay an owed amount.
A system for assessing a credit applicant’s ability to maintain a line of credit. It affects whether an applicant will be accepted for credit as well as the applicant’s credit…
A transaction initiated by a cardholder which decreases the available credit of the cardholder’s account. The account holder must pay back the credit transaction as per the card…
Credit card companies have been able to store a lot of information on customers, merchants and banks in their databases. The Combined Terminated Merchant File (Combined Terminated…
A monthly projection of risk exposure calculated from the processing volumes of the previous months.
A form of electronic bill presentment and payment in which a customer is emailed a bill along with payment instructions, often including a direct link to a payment mechanism.…
Another term for the Internet.
A group of cardholder accounts. Allows for better efficiency and easier identification.
Refers to the organization of monthly cardholder statements by group. It allows for better efficiency and easier receipt of payments.
The period of time in which transactions are accumulated on bankcards for billing.