Page 23 - GS190802

Spotlight Innovators

when analyzing whether the account has any additional boarding factors. Firearms, adult entertainment and even tobacco
fall into this type of MCC category.

The other type of risk is directly associated with the merchant’s payment account activity. Industries, products and
selling methods that have historically produced higher percentages of chargebacks and/or disputes require additional
scrutiny and reinforcement during underwriting. In this case, the account will generally require an additional layer of
chargeback mitigation and fraud prevention tools to manage these vulnerabilities and qualify the account. Some examples
include: subscription services, businesses that offer recurring billing models, and card-not-present accounts with monthly
transaction volumes over $50,000.

In some risk cases, the card brands also require a specialty merchant to register with them. For example, an adult online
content streaming company must register with all the card brands as a restricted MCC merchant, but merchants selling
cigars online are only required to register with one of the card brands. Knowing when this registration requirement
applies enables sales professionals to inform the merchant early on where they stand.
Straight to “GO”

One of the toughest calls when supporting restricted MCC/specialty merchant accounts on the sales side is selecting a
processor that can be trusted to assess the application fairly. It is important to know how to guide the merchant, application
and account through the mitigation process as efficiently and professionally as possible.
Humboldt Merchant Services has decades of experience and has demonstrated thought leadership when it comes to
supporting restricted MCC/specialty merchant business. As a result, Humboldt has become known as a safe harbor for
merchants selling legal products that also have reputational risk. Certain banks and acquirers have made the business
decision to prohibit these businesses, but Humboldt has built a sound reputation on expertly evaluating these accounts
and taking worthy applications all the way to the finish line. “We’ve made it our primary business to understand and

23