If your business is on the terminated merchant file (TMF) list or MATCH list, it will be nearly impossible to find a credible payment processor to handle your account. The MATCH list is managed by MasterCard and lists businesses and owners whose credit card processing privileges have been terminated. Why is this list so crucial? When a merchant applies for an account, acquiring banks reference the list to see if they have been terminated in the past. Unfortunately once a merchant is placed on the list, it is cumbersome to get off it.
How Merchants Get On the List
When a merchant is placed on the list, the merchant’s name, principal, and business partners are all recorded on the MATCH list. There are a number of disqualifying acts that will place merchants on the TMF list.
Disqualifying acts include:
- Excessive chargebacks caused by business practices or procedures
- Evidence of money “laundering”
- Excessive deposits for transactions without cardholders authorization
- A conviction for credit or debit card fraud in any federal, state or county court
- Evidence of counterfeit activities
- Sufficient evidence that merchant is engaging in fraudulent activities.
Of course banks and card processors do make mistakes. Sometimes acquiring banks don’t verify or confirm information placed on the merchant list. If your business did not commit any of these acts, then you should fight placement on the list. EMB believes that being on the TMF list does not mean your business is not legitimate. Our policy is simple and straightforward. As long as there are no unpaid balances owed to your previous processor, EMB will accept your merchant account.
Unlike traditional financial institutions, EMB doesn’t judge your business based on risk status or credit history. To retain an account, your business just needs to keep your chargeback rate below 3%. The application is simple and user friendly, and can be completed in the time it takes to drink a single cup of coffee. Legitimate businesses shouldn’t be punished forever for showing up on the TMF list. eMerchantBroker can get you on the road to recovery with secure payment gateways. Contact us to set up your TMF merchant account, so you can get back to running the business that you love.