E-commerce (Electronic Commerce) is the buying and selling of products and services over the Internet. To accept money a merchant account is required to handle credit card payments. A merchant account is a special facility that is arranged with a credit card clearing bank that allows you to process card transactions through their facilities. In general, as internet merchants you are required to declare to the acquiring bank who gives you this facility that that is how you trade.
There are two basic ways of clearing a credit card through a merchant account.
The first example is perhaps the best option for businesses that are new to trading online for a few different reasons. When the customer places an order on your website, the credit card information is sent via a secure server. You are then sent an e-mail notifying you of the purchase. To obtain the customer, order and credit card details it is a simple case of logging onto the secure server site, and typing in your User ID and Password. The credit card is then processed manually through your shop card swipe terminal and the goods shipped out.

The more orders you begin to receive, you may find it beneficial to upgrade to using online credit card processing. In order to have your transactions processed in Real Time, your Web Site and Merchant Account will need to be linked together via a "Secure Payment Gateway." These companies provide a secure connection between your Web Site and your Merchant Account. Our secure servers will integrate your account with a suitable payment gateway for processing of your transactions online. Online processing is for UK based businesses only.