Are you looking for some practical guidance on how to become a payment facilitator? Well, we’d tell you this first – it requires commitment, skills, and the ability to take a good amount of financial risk. If you’re someone willing to take the leap of faith, then this guide is just for you.

Remember, those that successfully navigate through the challenges, primarily financial, when on route to becoming payment facilitators enjoy great rewards.

In this detailed post, we will give you a bird’s-eye view of what you need to be a successful payment facilitator. Also, we will tell you some differences between payment facilitator vs payment processor. That said, let’s dive right in:

Payment Facilitator vs Payment Processor:

Before we dive into the ‘who and what’ of the payment facilitation, let’s talk about payment facilitator vs payment processor. This will ensure everybody reading this is on the same page. So, the main difference between both of these is how the merchant accounts are structured and organized.

• With the payment facilitator or PayFac model, every user gets a sub-merchant ID. Each ID is directly registered under the master merchant account of the payment facilitator. This allows faster onboarding and greater control over your user’s experience. While this is a great way to eliminate the middlemen (ISOs), you will be responsible for directly dealing with an army of sub-merchants.
• With the payment processor model, you need to rely on the Independent Sales Organizations (ISOs). They sell your payment solutions to the merchants. So instead of directly boarding the merchants via the PayFac model, you will have to add a layer of ISOs working under you, which means a few extra steps to take, ranging from hiring the ISOs to getting merchants onboard via them.

Now you know the basics of payment facilitator vs payment processor, we can move towards the topics you are the most interested in:

Who Can Become a Payment Facilitator?

Professional payment facilitators can remove most of the hurdles that arise when setting up customers for payment acceptance while also offering a closely integrated experience to users.

So if you’re a Point-of-sale systems provider, a merchant acquirer, or ISO, having a product/service you want to combine with the payment facilitation model, you are well-equipped to be a facilitator.

This is especially beneficial for ISOs working in a low-risk niche where they get recurring billing like property management. They can easily take the financial risk of becoming a payment facilitator.

How to Become a Payment Facilitator – Do You Have What it Takes?

Now that you know who can become a payment facilitator let’s talk about what it takes to be one. Remember, it’s not just an expensive area to step into; it also requires a wealth of knowledge and special skills to go through the process and build your payment facilitation business.

Therefore, unless you are an ISO, as mentioned above, you will be trying to learn the ropes of a very complex business model without the advantage of prior knowledge.

To help you understand things further, we have given a bird’s-eye view of things involved in the process:

• You’ll have to register with four major card brands and make an annual fee payment
• You will have to find and negotiate a processing agreement with a payment processor that’ll sponsor you in becoming a payment facilitator
• You will have to develop policies for risk management and find capable people for managing it
• You will have to set up a platform that’ll be used to run your business and manage all areas of payment processing, such as finding reports, transaction monitoring, etc. OR, you can connect with a company having a payment facilitation platform already
• You will have to bring sub-merchants on board and start processing

Furthermore, it’s not a finite process that you need to go through once to become a payment facilitator. You will have to keep investing your time and money on an ongoing basis.

Keep in mind, when you’re operating as a payment facilitator, all the payments your sub-merchants process are your responsibility.

As for the cost, your initial investment would likely be in the six figures, and in the long run, you’ll have to spend even more than that.

Seems Challenging? Here’s a Simple Solution - Partner Up With a Payment Facilitator:

If you’re still reading this post, then it means you are looking for something that doesn’t come with so many roadblocks and requirements. Something that’s flexible and can help you become a payment facilitator without shelling out big bucks. Well, the great news is that there is a solution – partner up with a payment facilitator like North American Bancard.

With us as your reliable partner, you won’t have to go through the scary and overwhelming process mentioned above. You will not have to be responsible and accountable for hundreds of sub merchants. Also, you will get most of the benefits of a payment facilitator without having to be one from scratch.

Just partner with North American Bancard and use our registered payment facilitation platform. You can use it to establish your own unique offering in the market— no need to break your bank and set up everything from the scratch. We’ll help you set everything up at minimal costs while ensuring you enjoy most of the benefits of being a payment facilitator.

The gist is, with us on your side, you’ll be able to focus on your main business while also reaping the juicy benefits of operating as a payment facilitator.

Parting Words:

You can learn more about how to become a payment facilitator using North American Bancard’s platform and save a lot of money and enjoy a range of benefits. Feel free to get in touch with us today – let’s make you a payment facilitator so you can enjoy more freedom and greater profits