Payment Processing Technologists

ETA 2013

2013-04-29T14:00:00.000-07:00

ETA here we come! We are headed out to New Orleans for the 2013 Electronic Transaction Association conference, the biggest conference in the payment processing industry. We're excited to show off the newly launched TRANSAX Gateway.

If you will be at ETA, visit us at booth #823!

ANNOUNCING TRANSAX GATEWAY

2013-04-28T00:21:00.002-07:00

I have been quiet for awhile. That is because we have had something big brewing. And after over a year in development it is ready for launch! Presenting the TRANSAX Gateway!

TRANSAX Gateway is much more than just another payment gateway. Sure, our Virtual Terminal, Recurring Billing, Batch Upload, Reporting, and other common payment gateway features are much more feature rich and flexible than other payment gateways on the market. But beyond that, there are a couple key factors that sets us apart:

1) A modular approach. Hanging off of TRANSAX Gateway are modules that extend the functionality beyond a mere payment gateway. The TRANSAX BillPay module adds a full Electronic Bill Presentment and Payment system that is completely integrated into the gateway. Add our TRANSAX QB module, also fully integrated into TRANSAX Gateway and TRANSAX BillPay, and each component becomes more powerful. Each new module enhances the core gateway as well as every other module. Users can pick and choose which modules they want to use. Many additional modules are upcoming - keep your eyes here for upcoming announcements!

2) Fully Scriptable. We've designed TRANSAX Gateway with software developers in mind. Everything is exposed via API. Aside from being able to control your transactions through an API, you can fully control your recurring transactions, pull any data you need, control the BillPay module, etc - all through API. This allows developers to use as much or as little as they want in order to build their solution. They can use us as their backend, and build their own interface, or use the interface we provide, or bits and pieces of both.

The TRANSAX Gateway is a powerful tool for merchants, software developers and anybody providing merchant accounts or other payment processing vehicles to their customers.

For a full demo, contact us today! And if you will be at ETA in New Orleans this year, visit our booth! #823

Tokenize Your World

2012-09-09T15:19:00.001-07:00

It amazes me how many merchants are still storing credit card numbers. This occurs in many forms. Some merchants have their credit card numbers stored within QuickBooks. Others have their credit card numbers in their home grown Microsoft Access, FileMaker, 4D or other database. Still others have them on paper forms, in e-mails, in Microsoft Excel, or other locations.

Hanging onto credit cards in any format is a big risk! Fines are steep if those card numbers are stolen. And it does happen! My favorite story is about a merchant that kept the credit card numbers of their customers on paper files, and locked those files in the trunk of the owners car. Pretty secure huh? Well, it was ... until the car was stolen.

It is so much better to use a popular system commonly referred to as tokenization. Essentially all of the credit card information, ACH information, and other sensitive billing information, is stored in the payment gateway. The payment gateway returns a token, which is then stored within the merchant's system - whether QuickBooks, Microsoft Access, or any other. Merchants can then process payments for the customer based on the token, and not worry about having the exposure of being responsible for the safety of that sensitive cardholder data.

Most payment gateways support tokenization these days. The TransaX Gateway has a sophisiticated and flexible tokenization system, and example integrations in numerous technologies.

Process Credit Cards and ACH in Excel!

2012-07-22T09:59:00.000-07:00

Before you say "wha huh?", imagine an organization that keeps their customer list in Excel, and tracks orders in Excel. Yes, there are companies that track their entire business in Excel. Excel is an extremely powerful application that can be pushed very far.

With the latest release of TransaX FleXport, an Excel example is included. Excel can be used as a virtual terminal, payment data for customers "tokenized" and those tokens can be stored within Excel, to be processed again later. This creates a secure / PCI compliant configuration within Excel.

Download TransaX FleXport and take a look!

More information on TRANSAX

TransaX FleXport 6.3 released with Excel and CGI

2012-07-20T09:54:00.000-07:00

NELiX TransaX LLC, based in Schaumburg IL, adds more options for developers.
NELiX TransaX has added numerous new technologies iWith the latest release of TransaX FleXport,

NELiX TransaX has released a number of new technologies in the latest TransaX FleXport release. These include a new Excel example. This allows Excel developers to easily integrate credit card and ACH processing within an Excel based application. Additionally, a new CGI (PERL based) integration example is included as well.

Perhaps the most notable change in the latest offering is the addition of Magtek Magensafe support within FileMaker. This allows FileMaker developers to deliver a secure, PCI compliant solution with swipe support and end-to-end encryption.

"You would be surprised how many Excel developers are out there who would like to include points of payment within their spreadsheet," explains Matthew J. Schwartz, CPP, President of NELiX TransaX LLC. "We've also helped legacy developers with our CGI / PERL offerring. But we are most excited about the new Magnesafe support within FileMaker."

The NELiX TransaX FleXPort Toolkit includes documentation, example integrations and modules for:

VB.NET 1.1
VB.NET 2.0
VB.NET WinForms
C#
Classic ASP
Microsoft Access / VBA
Microsoft Excel / VBA
VB6
PHP
Ruby
4D/4th Dimension
FileMaker
iMIS
Flex/Flash
FoxPro
ColdFusion
JAVA
Lasso
Android
PERL
CGI / PERL

Information about NELiX TransaX can be found at http://www.nelixtransax.com

Information on NELiX TransaX FleXPort can be found at http://www.transaxdevelopers.com

Swipe Credit Cards through FileMaker with End-to-End Encryption

2012-07-17T10:00:00.000-07:00

Process secure card present transactions through FileMaker

MIAMI, FL. – July 16, 2012 – NELiX TRANSAX LLC today announced the release of TRANSAX FleXport 6.3. TRANSAX FleXport is a toolkit to help developers easily integrate points of payment into any application they are developing. This toolkit includes a free FileMaker plug-in.

The latest version of the TRANSAX FileMaker Plug-In includes support for Magtek Magnesafe Swipe Readers. Magnesafe is a new technology that encrypts the credit card payload at the head. The payload is decrypted at the payment gateway. This allows a true end-to-end encryption, creating a secure PCI Compliant environment.

“PCI Compliance is a major concern amongst merchants,” explains Matthew Schwartz, President of NELiX TRANSAX LLC. “Security breaches leading to credit card theft can put a merchant out of business. Anything that can be done to reduce risk or bring the merchant’s processing out of scope, is a great benefit.”

The TRANSAX FileMaker plug-in has no upfront or license costs and is easy to setup. NELiX TRANSAX LLC will be demonstrating the Magtek Magnesafe Swipe capabilities at the upcoming FileMaker Developer Conference 2012 in Miami, Florida.

About NELiX TRANSAX LLC

NELiX TRANSAX LLC is the only payment processing provider that intrinsically understands the needs and desires of software developers. Why? It’s simple. We are software developers ourselves. TRANSAX is a unique entity. TRANSAX is a merchant account acquirer that grew organically from a custom web development business. We can assist with your payment processing integration or take care of it for you.

Contact:

866-513-1547
info@nelixTRANSAX.com
http://www.nelixTRANSAX.com

Miami and FileMaker DevCon here we come!

2012-07-16T22:54:00.000-07:00

As you read this, we are on our way to Miami for FileMaker DevCon 2012. We're excited to show off our easy to use plug in for credit card / debit card / ACH processing automation. No licensing fees, easy to use, and FileMaker developers on staff and waiting to help!

This is our third year at DevCon. It's a great group, a lot of friendly faces, and tons of great information to learn. We hope to see you there!

More information on the processing credit cards and ACH within FileMaker using TransaX FleXPort

Pay Vendors in QuickBooks with TransaX QB - now on YouTube

2012-07-15T17:13:00.002-07:00

See how easy it is to pay your vendors with ACH using QuickBooks and TransaX QB:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsxs1wcP_Sk

Process Credit Cards using FileMaker - new YouTube Video

2012-07-15T16:40:00.001-07:00

Take a look at our new YouTube video on how easy it is to use TransaX FleXport to integrate credit card and ACH processing into your FileMaker database.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Bd00kD0G0U

VB.NET WinForms and payment processing

2012-07-14T21:11:00.000-07:00

The question of adding credit card and ACH acceptance into a .NET web based application is one that comes up frequently. Most web based applications have some form of payment processing.

Less frequently does the question of integrating payment acceptance into a .NET Windows Forms based applicaiton. However, the question does come up from time to time.

In answer to that question, TransaX has just added a VB.NET WinForms example into our FleXport toolkit! If you are trying to integrate points of payment into a VB.NET WinForms app, look no further - we have your answer here!

More information on NELiX TransaX
More information on Credit Card and ACH acceptance in .NET apps

TransaX FleXport 6.2 Released!

2012-07-12T22:28:00.000-07:00

NELiX TransaX LLC, based in Schaumburg IL, turns their attention to PERL

NELiX TransaX has released a new version of the TransaX FleXport ToolKit. The FleXport ToolKit enables developers to easily integrate payment processing (credit card, debit card, ACH / e-check, remote deposit capture (RDC), etc) into their applications. With the latest release, a new PERL component has been added.

"PERL is one of the oldest web based technologies that is still in use today," explains Matthew J. Schwartz, President of NELiX TransaX. "And now PERL developers can easily integrate points of payment."

Additionally, the new release contains an updated Android JAVA class, and a new VB.NET WinForms example.

The NELiX TransaX FleXPort Toolkit includes documentation, example integrations and modules for:

VB.NET 1.1
VB.NET 2.0
C#
Classic ASP
Microsoft Access
VB6
PHP
Ruby
4D/4th Dimension
FileMaker
iMIS
Flex/Flash
FoxPro
ColdFusion
JAVA
Lasso
Android
PERL

Information about NELiX TransaX can be found at http://www.nelixtransax.com

Information on NELiX TransaX FleXPort can be found at http://www.transaxdevelopers.com

Certified Payment Professionals times 2!

2012-07-10T22:49:00.000-07:00

NELiX TransaX is extremely proud to be able to say that we have not one, but two Certified Payment Professionals steering the ship. The CPP program is a way that merchants can trust that they are dealing with somebody who understands the industry, has been around for awhile, and answers to a higher authority - namely, the Electronic Transaction Association.

Both Matthew J. Schwartz, President, and Adam O'Hare, Vice President, have been part of the inaugural group of Certified Payment Professionals.

Process Credit Cards and ACH with PERL

2012-07-08T20:59:00.000-07:00

PERL is one of the oldest web technology. Since PERL has been introduced, many other development platforms have been introduced. Yet PERL has remained a language that is used for website applications to this day. To answer the needs of PERL developers trying to integrate points of payment into their application, we decided to add a PERL component to our FleXpot toolkit.

With FleXport, PERL developers can easily and quickly add credit card and ACH / E-check accpetance into their PERL based applications and scripts.

More information on NELiX TransaX.
More information on credit card and ACH acceptance in PERL.

Scaling New Heights

2012-07-05T22:44:00.000-07:00

I just returned from Nashville, TN and the Scaling New Heights conference. We were pleased to be a sponsor this year. Scaling New Heights is a gathering of QuickBooks ProAdvisors and other QuickBooks professionals. It was a large and friendly group of individuals! We enjoyed meeting new people, and reconnecting with old friends.

The TransaX QB product - which allows credit card / debit card / ACH processing through QB with additional features such as batch processing, transaction sync, account payables and more, was a big hit!

We hope to see you again next year in Orlando!!

More informaiton on processing credit cards in QuickBooks using TransaX QB

Adam O'Hare is now a Certified Payment Professional (CPP)!

2012-07-03T22:38:00.001-07:00

The Electronic Transactions Association (ETA) is pleased to announce that Adam O'Hare has been granted the designation of Certified Payments Professional™ (CCP). By successfully meeting the rigorous certification examination requirements, he has joined an exclusive community of electronic transactions professionals who have earned this distinguished certification. In doing so, Mr. O'Hare brings the highest level of expertise and distinction in electronic transactions to NELiX TransaX, LLC. Recognizing the unique skills and special knowledge required of electronic transactions professionals, ETA launched the certification program in 2011.

In addition to meeting the program's education and experience requirements, those awarded the CPP™ designation must complete a minimum of 36 hours of industry-related continuing professional education every three years.

More and more employers, faced with critical staffing decisions, consider the CPP™ credential an added value to current and prospective employees. Further, a competent CPP-certified staff is crucial to maintaining a competitive advantage in the field.

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About ETA

The Electronic Transactions Association is an international trade association representing more than 500 companies who offer electronic transaction processing products and services. ETA’s mission is to advance the payments industry profession by providing leadership through education, advocacy and the exchange of information.

NELiX TransaX LLC, based in Schaumburg IL, releases TransaX QB 6.7.11.0

2012-03-29T19:22:00.002-07:00

Committed to continually enhancing their technology, NELiX TransaX releases TransaX QB version 6.7.11.0. This version enhances the batch process by offering additional options to filter invoices to be processed. TransaX QB makes it easier and easier for merchants to process credit card and ACH payments through QuickBooks.

"We are continually listening to the feedback from our customers," explains Matt Schwartz, President of NELiX TransaX, " and using that feedback to improve our products."

Many exciting new features are in the works for subsequent releases, so keep your eye out for more announcements!

Information on the NELiX TransaX QuickBooks module can be found at http://www.quickbookscreditcards.com

Information about NELiX TransaX can be found at http://www.nelixtransax.com

FileMaker DevCon 2012

2012-03-03T18:46:00.000-08:00

We just finalized our travel plans for this year's FileMaker DevCon. This year in Miami FL, July 16 - 19th. NELiX TransaX will be there showcasing our FileMaker plug-in for easily enabling any FileMaker database with payment processing capabilities. Our plug-in is free, and we expect to have a great response, as we have had in previous years.

If you will be there, stop by our booth!

More about FileMaker DevCon 2012
More about Credit Card and ACH processing in FileMaker

AMC Institute 2012

2012-02-07T19:49:00.000-08:00

I'm heading out to sunny Palm Springs tomorrow morning for the 2012 AMC Institute Winter Meeting and I couldn't be happier! AMC Institute meetings are always great - great people, great food, great content - I always learn a ton - and great opportunities!

Maybe I'll see you there!

AMC Institute

Certified Payment Professional

2012-02-04T12:20:00.000-08:00

Every industry has it's certifications and accreditations. A body governing an industry, usually an association, puts together a set of standards that they feel all active members of that industry should adhere to. These standards are usually discussed in great detail amongst many industry participants who have been active, and are leaders in their field.

Members of the industry are then tested and reviewed, and if they pass - they are given a stamp of approval from the governing body. This seal tells the world that this individual has knowledge and understanding of the industry they are working in, and can prove it.

Recently, ETA developed the CPP program - the Certified Payments Professional. I'm proud to say that I was in the very first test group, and I passed! It is a great honor to be considered by ETA to be knowledgable in my field.

Matthew J. Schwartz is now a Certified Payment Professional

2012-01-30T20:59:00.000-08:00

The Electronic Transactions Association (ETA) is pleased to announce that Matthew J. Schwartz has been granted the designation of Certified Payments Professional™ (CCP). By successfully meeting the rigorous certification examination requirements, he has joined an exclusive community of electronic transactions professionals who have earned this distinguished certification. In doing so, Mr. Schwartz brings the highest level of expertise and distinction in electronic transactions to NELiX TransaX, LLC. Recognizing the unique skills and special knowledge required of electronic transactions professionals, ETA launched the certification program in 2011.

------------------------

About ETA

TransaX QB Version 6.7.7.0 Released!

2011-12-03T13:39:00.001-08:00

The latest version of TransaX QB includes not only numerous usability enhancements, but also comes with new branding! Previously the NELiX TransaX QuickBooks Module, now called TransaX QB! The branding shift coincides with a branding strategy overhaul across the NELiX TransaX Technology suite.

This includes:

TransaX QB - previously the NELiX TransaX QuickBooks Module"
TransaX FleXport - our powerful developers toolkit for integrating points of payment into any application!
TransaX Mobile - our mobile offering (available on Android. On iPhone the old iTransaX brand remains currently.)
TransaX Billpay - our Electronic Bill Payment and Presentment solution

With the latest release of TransaX QB, NELiX TransaX has made numerous improvements to the TransaX SynX process, the Batch process, and the handling of A/R accounts and Asset Accounts throughout the system.

Information on the NELiX TransaX QuickBooks module can be found at http://www.quickbookscreditcards.com
Information about NELiX TransaX can be found at http://www.nelixtransax.com
Information on NELiX TransaX FleXPort can be found at http://www.transaxdevelopers.com/flexport

Merchant Accounts 101

2011-09-30T06:31:00.000-07:00

We had the opportunity to speak at the Accounting C4 2011 conference in Boston this year. Take a look at the session now live on YouTube!

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftDUru8gvrI

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZ1m2NUESKk

How I met Ben Stein at Accounting C4 in Boston!!

2011-09-21T22:19:00.001-07:00

I just got back from the Accounting C4 (Cloud Computing Collaborative Community) conference in Boston. It was a great show! It was my first time in Boston, and I particularly enjoyed the boat cruise around the bay - what amazing architecture that Boston has!

We made many great new contacts at the show, but the most interesting person that I met was Ben Stein! He was there to give the keynote speech, and I had the pleasure of riding the elevator down with him the morning of his keynote.

He noticed that I was also a speaker (as my badge was tagged), and said "You're a speaker too!". I responded, "yeah, but not nearly as entertaining as you!". He asked what I was speaking about, and when I replied "Merchant Accounts", his response was, "I just make people laugh and think, you talk about the important stuff - money!"

His keynote is great! It made you laugh and think. Very entertaining, informative and intelligent.

And as for my session, we'll soon you can see for yourself. We took a video, and will be posting on YouTube soon. Watch this space!

In the meantime, you can learn more about our QuickBooks Credit Card and ACH Processing Plug-in.

Right Networks and Accounting C4

2011-09-14T08:26:00.000-07:00

We're excited to be heading out to the C4 Accounting Cloud Computing Collaborative Community conference in Boston this weekend!

Right Networks is Intuit's Exclusive Provider of the QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions Hosting Service. And NELiX TransaX is Right Network's exclusive partner for providing payment processing services.

With our powerful QuickBooks plug in (TransaX QB), allowing merchants to process credit card transactions, run ACH / e-check transactions, run many transactions in a batch, pay vendors via ACH and much more, partnering with Right Networks was a perfect fit.

TransaX QB is already installed on the Right Networks cloud, so their client base has access to it instantly.

At the show this weekend, we'll be holding a session discussion how credit card transactions work - how the communication takes place, how the money flows and more. If you're in Boston, and interested in QuickBooks Cloud Computing, check out the show and attend our session!

More on Right Networks
More on C4 Accounting Cloud Computing Collaborative Community

The Durbin Amendment

2011-07-30T11:49:00.000-07:00

The recent Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 had largely no affect on the merchant account side of the banking business. That is, until the Derbin Amendment was attached and pushed through.

I recently had the opportunity to see Senator Christopher Dodd speak at ETA, and he explained how the amendment was pushed through at the last minute - nobody really paid attention to it, and it just got passed along with everything else.

The Durbin Amendment has some major ramifications to the payment processing industry. Speicifically:

A cap of 7 to 12 cents on most debit card swipe fees, a decline of about 80% from present levels

The introduction of competition, by giving merchants a choice as to which debit network they process transactions over. For example, present arrangements effectively force merchants to process many Visa transactions over the STAR network, even if competitors like PULSE and NYCE offer to conduct the same transaction at a lower processing price.

Merchants can impose a $10 minimum on credit card transactions (this number can be adjusted by the Fed as they see fit). Previously, Visa and MasterCard banned this practice in their merchant agreements.

Merchants are allowed to give discounts at the register to those who pay with cash or debit cards. Previously, Visa and MasterCard banned this practice in their merchant agreements.

Of course, anybody who makes their money from selling merchant accounts is unhappy about this. The amendment is under review, according to Senator Dodd, so we may see changes in the future, but that will most likely take some time.

A great article about this amendment can be found here (and some of the information in this blog was taken from this article): http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/2011/durbin-amendment-explained/