Payment Systems and Ecommerce

1. Payment Systems and Ecommerce

2. A payment system is a system for the transfer of money. What makes it a "system" is that it employs cash-substitutes; traditional payment systems are negotiable instruments such as drafts (e.g., checks), credit cards and other charge cards, documentary credit (such as L/C) and electronic funds transfers. Some payment systems include credit mechanisms, but that is essentially a different aspect of payment. Payment systems are used in lieu of tendering cash in domestic and international transactions and consist of a major service provided by banks and other financial institutions. In the US, they are regulated by different state statutes (UCC) and Federal regulations. Additional forms of payment systems (including physical or electronic infrastructure and associated procedures and protocols) are used to settle financial transactions in automated teller machine networks, stored-value card networks, bond markets, currency markets, and futures, derivatives, or options markets, or to transfer funds between financial institutions. Due to the backing of modern fiat currencies with government bonds, payment systems are a core part of modern monetary systems.

3. The term electronic payment can refer narrowly to e-commerce - a payment for buying and selling goods or services offered through the Internet, or broadly to any type of electronic funds transfer. An e-commerce payment system facilitates the acceptance of electronic payment for online transactions. Also known as a sample of Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), e-commerce payment systems have become increasingly popular due to the widespread use of the internet-based shopping and banking. In the early years of B2C transactions, many consumers were apprehensive of using their credit and debit cards over the internet because of the perceived increased risk of fraud. Recent research shows that 90% of people in the United Kingdom still do not shop online because they do not trust online payment systems. However, 54% do believe that it is safe to shop online which is an increase from 26% in 2006.

4. There are numerous different payments systems available for online merchants. These include the traditional credit, debit and charge card but also new technologies such as digital wallets, e-cash, mobile payment and e-checks. Another form of payment system is allowing a 3rd party to complete the online transaction for you. These companies are called Payment Service Providers (PSP), a good example is Paypal or WorldPay. A payment service provider (PSP) offers merchants online services for accepting electronic payments by a variety of payment methods including credit card, bank-based payments such as direct debit, bank transfer, and real-time bank transfer based on online banking. Some PSPs provide unique services to process other next generation methods (Payment systems) including cash payments, wallets such as PayPal, prepaid cards or vouchers, and even paper or e-check processing. Typically, a PSP can connect to multiple acquiring banks, card, and payment networks. In many cases, the PSP will fully manage these technical connections, relationships with the external network, and bank accounts. This makes the merchant less dependent on financial institutions and free from the task of establishing these connections directly - especially when operating internationally.

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