Posted by NationalACH on Sep 24, 2012

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Global ecommerce sales will top $1.25 trillion by 2013, according to InternetRetailer.

As commerce merchants expand market reach globally, how can payments be guaranteed and the risk of fraud eliminated?  International bank transfers are the answer.

Throughout the world, bank transfers are the preferred method of paying for online purchases.  With a bank transfer, funds are sent directly to merchants from the buyers’ bank account.  Bank transfers are similar to a cash transaction.  Transactions cannot be charged back by buyers.  Funds are guaranteed to merchants.

 How Do Bank Transfers for International Payment Work?

It’s easy for customers to buy with an international bank transfer.

  • At checkout, the buyer clicks on the “pay by bank transfer” payment button.
  • A list of banks located in the buyer’s country is displayed
  • The buyer clicks on the right bank.  The buyer is immediately directed to the bank’s online banking site.
  • The buyer logs in and authorizes the transaction.
  • The merchant is notified that the transaction is complete.  The buyer receives an email confirmation.
  • The merchant can immediately ship the product or the digital download.
  • Funds are guaranteed to merchants.

Why are International Payments with Bank Transfers Guaranteed?

Bank transfers are considered a “push payment”.  Consumers log into their online banking site and push the payment to the merchant.

Because the buyer is vetted by the bank, much like an online bill payment, the transaction is guaranteed.  The buyer cannot assert that the transaction was not authorized since the buyer could have only made the payment through the online bank system.

Compare this with credit card transaction or echecks.  With these payment options, the money is “pulled” from a consumers’ account by the merchant.  The consumer can claim the payment was not authorized, resulting in chargebacks for the merchant.

How High Risk Merchants Benefit from Bank Transfers

Merchants in high risk processing categories are at a greater risk for chargebacks than standard risk merchants.  Travel, digital content, online entertainment, direct marketing, games, downloads and many other industries are considered high risk.

As high risk merchants expand markets globally, the risk of chargebacks increases even more.  International transactions through credit cards are expensive.  Cybercriminals world-wide know how to manipulate the system and can create chargeback nightmares for merchants.

Many US processor will only allow a certain percentage of total transactions to be international, limiting the number of orders that can be accepted from global buyers.  In addition, some countries will only allow credit cards issued by domestic banks to be used for purchases within that country.

Conclusion

You need to have alternative payments such as international bank transfers in place, in order to truly reap the benefits of global ecommerce.

International ban transfers are used by millions of shoppers world-wide to purchase goods & services online. If you don't offer international bank transfers as a payment option at checkout, you risk losing sales to your competitors that do.  

Do you want to get more sales from international buyers?

Contact info@NationalACH.com today