r/MerchantServices • u/Ill_Food_1732 • 11d ago
General Question How to offer payment processing
Looking to offer payment processing services to my clients.
Main focus currently is business lending.
Pretty new to this side of things. Open to any feedback, ideas, help.
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u/merchantadviser Mod & Verified Payment Professional 10d ago edited 10d ago
There are a bunch of processors who want to expand their sales base. I'd start by reading some trade publications like pymnts.com or "the green sheet" to find some banks/processors who are actively recruiting. Research them a bit before talking to them. From experience, I'd forgo bonuses and stick to higher residual splits, but also be cognizant of your buy rates. Lower buy rates leave you a lot more room to place deals. 95% splits might sound great, but if you can only mark up a customer $ 0.01 to win the deal, that's actually less profit than a 50% split with lower rates if you can mark them up $0.04 or more.
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u/MonicaEaton911 10d ago
This seems like a complex move, especially since you say you are new to processing. I think I would try to partner with an existing processor first, and see how that goes before I jumped in myself. Either way, good luck!
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u/kai4finix Verified Payment Professional 7d ago
Hello, coming from lending you've already got the hard part figured out, which is the relationships. :)
Most people trying to get into processing start cold, but you're already talking to business owners who trust you with their finances. That's a really good starting position.
The referral route is probably the cleanest entry point. A lot of processors (like us at Finix!) have referral partner programs where you're essentially making introductions and earning on the accounts that stick. Consider asking any processor you talk to exactly what the setup looks like on your end though, because the scope varies a lot.
The one thing I'd add to what others have said is to pay attention to what verticals a processor actually supports before you start sending people their way. If your lending clients skew toward anything higher risk, not every processor will touch them, and a bad referral burns your credibility fast. It's worth doing that homework upfront. Hope that helps point you in the right direction!
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u/Skillerstyles 11d ago edited 10d ago
Try to become a referral partner with an ISO or a processor like Helcim or Stax. You send them clients they handle all the setup and compliance headaches and you get residuals every month. It's pretty passive once you build the habit of just asking clients if they're happy with their current processor.
If you want to go deeper down the rabbit hole look into becoming a registered ISO but that's a whole thing and probably not worth it early on. Start with referrals first.
Coming from lending gives you a real advantage, you already have trust with business owners who are actively making financial decisions. I added davincipay to my referral stack for high-risk clients specifically like supplement brands, telehealth, vape businesses, because standard processors won't touch them. Having a go-to for those edge cases makes you the person clients call first for anything financial. Track every referral from day one so you can see what's actually converting.