Fantasy Sports Merchant Account And Sports Forecasting Payments

Almost any kind of business that allows customers to purchase a product or service, especially if those transactions take place through a website, requires a merchant account to give customers the freedom to make their purchases with a debit or credit card. However, businesses in some industries inherently have a more difficult time obtaining payment processing accounts than others, simply due to the way those industries are viewed by banks and processing companies. Sports forecasting and Fantasy Sports websites are among the businesses that face these challenges, as many standard payment processing companies will simply refuse to provide a merchant account.

How Do I get a Fantasy Sports or Sports Forecasting Merchant Account

The difficulty in obtaining a fantasy sports or sports forecasting  merchant account comes not from any problem with the business of generating and selling sports forecasting tips, but from the fact that customers who buy these tips and picks are generally doing so for the purpose of gambling. Gambling is one of several industries, along with adult entertainment, cigarettes and e-cigarettes, and collectibles and antiques, that banks and payment processors view as inherently high risk, and those institutions will generally not offer accounts to companies that deal even tangentially with any aspect of those industries. Businesses that offer products or services under the umbrella of any of those industries need to turn to a processor that specializes in high risk merchant accounts in order to accept payment card transactions. For sports forecasters and fantasy sports merchants, this is true despite the fact that the transactions processed through a sports forecasting or fantasy sports merchant account are not themselves more vulnerable to chargebacks or fraud than those of any other business, assuming the website is updated frequently and the tips and picks provided are reasonably accurate. Simply having a connection to gambling means that sports forecasting is perceived as high risk, and rather than trying (unsuccessfully) to change a financial institution’s decision on that score, seeking a sports forecasting casting merchant account through a high risk processor is the best approach.

Your choices for high risk merchant account providers largely fall into one of two categories: domestic high risk processors and offshore high risk solutions. For a sports forecasting business just starting up or looking to move away from third-party payment processing for the first time, a domestic high risk processor is likely to be the better choice for a number of reasons. Many offshore banks and payment processors prefer to deal with companies that expect a high volume of transactions, at least $50,000 per month. Several offshore processors are payment aggregators, meaning that your transactions will be processed alongside those of other high risk businesses, with the potential that their chargebacks and problems may impact your ability to process credit transactions. Domestic high risk processing institutions are much more welcoming to small businesses and start-ups, and you will get the individual attention and personalized terms of a direct merchant account.

When applying for your sports forecasting or fantasy sports merchant account, you will need to provide your social security number to the payment processor for the necessary credit check. As part of the application process, be sure that your sports forecasting website is up and functioning completely, as the underwriter in charge of your account will need to access the members’ area to ensure that everything is working and that the tips and picks you offer are readily available and regularly updated. If all goes well and your application is approved, you should be able to get your sports forecasting merchant account set up and ready to accept transactions within a week or two. Despite fantasy sport businesses being lumped into a high risk industry, it’s still possible for you to accept credit and debit transactions without paying unreasonable processing fees.

National and International Options for Fantasy Sports Merchant Accounts:

Durango Merchant Services works with several gateway processors and suppliers with sponsor banking relationships that provide both US based national and international credit card processing solutions. We can provide merchant accounts for the fantasy sports companies under one of the following two options:

Requirements to open a merchant account for fantasy sports businesses in the USA:

• Company entity based in the USA.
• REPRESENTATIVE of the company based in the USA.
• Bank Account is in the USA

Requirements of the European fantsy sports company merchant account:

• Minimum $ 50,000 USD per month in sales
• The company must be based in the EU

Merchant Service Prices and Contract Terms:

If you are looking for a fantsy sports merchant services provider, contact us by email or call us today to discuss setting up a merchant account for your business. We will discuss the following:

Available prices for fantasy sports payment processing:

• Discount rates that range between 1.95% and 4.95%
• Authorization fees ranging from: $ 0.15 to $0.25
• Monthly installments: rates ranging from $ 5.00 per month to $ 60.00 per month

Other terms of the fantasy credit card processing contract:

• Rolling reserve requirements that range from: 0% of the rolling reserve to 10% of the rolling reserve
• Variable contract lengths including availability of month to month
• Free application processing
• Direct financing with regular deposits (either daily or weekly depending on international vs. onshore)

Additional benefits of the fantasy sport business merchant account:

If you get a fantasy sports merchant account with Durango Merchant Services, then you will also be eligible for other benefits that we offer, we can set you up with electronic commerce and recurring billing via our online portal. Businesses can receive the following additional benefits:

• Competitive rates
• Acceptance of multiple currencies and deposits
• Compatibility with major gateways and shopping carts
• Accept Visa / MasterCard / American Express at your store
• Integration assistance with more than 100 shopping carts
• Chargeback prevention tools and advice
• eCheck processing
• Our gateway comes with industry leading fraud detection and prevention tools

We provide fantasy sports merchant accounts for the following:

• Startups and existing businesses – we help all types of businesses
• If you have been Previously rejected or discarded by another processor, we can help you get back on track
• High ticket merchants and merchants with bad credit
• Minimum processing: $5,000 minimum for national accounts, $50,000 for international accounts

Durango Merchant Services is here to help secure your Fantasy Sports Merchant Account

Our dedicated team has negotiated on behalf of more than 12,000 clients.  We understand the back and forth and give and take of negotiating processing accounts for high risk merchants, including hundreds of fantasy sports merchant accounts.

We know that there aren’t always easy answers. But remember, there is almost always a way forward and if you can make it through the first 3 years with a good track record, life will become much easier and your business will be better for it.