High risk friendly
Being here, your business was probably rejected before when applying for a merchant account. Luckily MerchantScout is specialized to bring complete card payment solutions to all high risk sectors.
Why is your business "high risk"?
How to keep chargebacks low?
We got you covered
MerchantScout specializes in the largest array or high risk MCCs. Our risk management team has a decade worth of experience working with such businesses and adopted a flexible, case-by-case approach. With our network of premium EU & international banking setups we onboard your business even if you have been categorized as high risk before.
There are many factors considered by banks and payment providers when deciding whether a business should be classified as high-risk. The primary concern is the reputation of the industry in which the business is operating, and it's trading/processing history.
For example, the online gambling or adult industries are automatically considered as high-risk by acquiring banks due to stricter regulations and risk of large fines due to non-compliance.
Also, when there is the potential for clients to end up feeling dissatisfied with the product or service, or when volumes are higher, there is a higher chance of disputes. Theft of credit card details or other data is also a risk. The providers are at risk and thus impose stricter terms, or decline the merchant account opening.
What is a high risk merchant account?
High Risk MCC categories
Credit card processing history is the second most important factor when it comes to getting approved. Card schemes, such as Visa and MasterCard, dictate the acceptable chargeback thresholds, which should not exceed 1% from sales volume and transaction count.
Many businesses can reach this threshold very quickly and even a couple of consecutive months above threshold will lead to the bank will terminating the merchant account. This is why most high-risk merchants are asked for card processing statements detailing the previous 6 months and can only be approved after a thorough review. High chargeback ratios, excessive refunds and fraud trends lower the chances of getting approved.
How to prevent chargebacks?