DirectPayNet

Category: STRIPE

  • Stripe for Supplement Sellers? The #1 Payment Processing Tip

    Stripe for Supplement Sellers? The #1 Payment Processing Tip

    We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again — Stripe for supplement sellers is a bad idea.

    And if you’re thinking about or already using Stripe to sell supplements, now’s your chance to take action before it’s too late.

    Why So Many Sellers Use Stripe

    Stripe is a payment processing platform that allows you to accept credit cards, debit cards, and other forms of electronic payment.

    Stripe is used by more than 200,000 businesses around the world to accept payments on the web and mobile. It was founded in 2009 by brothers Patrick and John Collison, who were only 19 and 21 at the time. Today, Stripe is valued at $95 billion thanks to its massive customer base and impressive growth rate.

    Easy to Use

    The platform provides a user interface that can be used without any coding knowledge necessary. You simply enter your business details, create your account, add payment methods, and start accepting payments right away.

    Getting payment processing set up in minutes is a huge draw for online merchants. But that speed comes with its own risk that most sellers don’t know about.

    Integration

    If you’re using Shopify or WordPress as your online store platform, then you’ll have no problem integrating Stripe with it. In fact, there are hundreds of other platforms where Stripe can be integrated seamlessly as well — including BigCommerce and WooCommerce.

    Stripe is ubiquitous. Or at least it wants to be. Again, even if it’s everywhere doesn’t mean it’s a good platform to use. That’s not entirely at the fault of Stripe, but of the regulations surrounding online sales. But since Stripe wants to be the face of online credit card processing, it deserves all the blows that come its way.

    Why Selling Supplements on Stripe Is Bad

    Stripe is also great for small businesses and entrepreneurs who want quick and easy processing without thinking twice. However, if you’re a supplement seller who wants to accept credit cards, there are some major downsides to using Stripe that you should know about before signing up.

    Limited Merchant Category Support

    Stripe supports a limited number of merchant categories. In particular, Stripe does not support dietary supplements or medical devices (which includes things like hearing aids and pacemakers). If you’re selling a product that falls into one of these categories, then Stripe is not an option for you at all.

    Stripe essentially only supports low-risk merchants, like those that have an inventory and sell physical goods. They are making moves towards supporting dropshipping, but it’s not quite there yet.

    Payment Aggregator, Not Processor

    Stripe payment processing is often confused with what they actually do, which is aggregating. They don’t process your payments. they’re not a bank, and they don’t handle your money.

    The ecommerce platform provides you with a payment gateway that allows customers to pay you directly through their bank accounts or credit cards at checkout.

    As a 3rd-party payment processor, payment aggregator, or payment facilitator (these are synonymous), Stripe gives you a little piece of their own merchant account. So your business actually lives underneath theirs and they allow you to accept payments via their credit card payment processing partners and financial institutions.

    That’s a mouthful, we know. But it’s important for you to understand.

    Accounts Suspended on a Whim

    Stripe isn’t a bank and doesn’t have any real accountability when it comes to its customers’ money. If you have a dispute with a customer and they file a chargeback against you, Stripe will close your account without any warning or explanation. This means you’ll lose all of your funds in the account — even if they’re legitimate card transactions.

    There’s no recourse for this problem except for appealing directly to Stripe’s customer service team (which isn’t always successful). You can also try contacting them via email or phone and providing your Stripe account number but they may not respond or acknowledge receipt of your message.

    The problem is a lack of transparency with Stripe’s terms of service. Within the many-paged document, you can find information on what Stripe supports and what they don’t. But it’s not easily accessible, and most merchants don’t find out they’ve made a mistake until they wake up one morning with no funds, not processing power, and no running store.

    We get asked, “does Stripe allow supplement sales?” quite often. And unfortunately, the answer is no. Stripe will quickly freeze your funds and shut down your account.

    We also get asked, “is Stripe CBD friendly?” The answer is, again, no. CBD is its own category but can also fall into the supplements category. Neither are supported.

    What’s The Big Deal About Selling Supplements?

    Selling supplements online is a relatively high-risk business. For example, if you sell supplements that claim to cure cancer or diabetes, you will be required to prove that they work.

    You can do this by showing the FDA that your product meets their standards for safety and efficacy. However, this is not always easy to do; it usually requires years of testing and clinical trials.

    If you’re selling supplements for general health purposes (such as vitamins), then it’s easier to get approval from the FDA. But even then, there are still some risks involved in selling supplements online:

    The FDA has special rules that apply only to online sales of dietary supplements.

    You may also be required to register with state agencies in order to sell certain types of supplements.

    In either case, selling supplements online comes with legal risks that don’t apply when selling other products online.

    Stripe, and other aggregators like PayPal and Square, want nothing to do with that. In fact, it would breach the contracts they have with the payment processors and banks they work with.

    For supplements, you need a high-risk payment processor.

    The Solution: A Real Merchant Account

    If you sell supplements online, you need to secure a high-risk merchant account.

    If you’re not familiar with the term “high-risk merchant account”, it’s an essential tool for supplement sellers. These accounts are set up specifically for types of businesses that run the risk of fraud and chargebacks due to the nature of their products. The most common high-risk industries include:

    • Health & Wellness
    • Weight Loss
    • Nutritional Supplements (Nutraceuticals)
    • Sports Nutrition
    • Pharmaceuticals

    With your own, actual merchant account, you can sell supplements without running the risk of a sudden shut down. You’ll also benefit from better rates and fees than Stripe’s flat-rate options.

    Don’t Use Stripe to Sell Supplements. They Aren’t Designed to Work with Merchants Like You.

    Unfortunately, no matter how good Stripe is at what it does, it’s not ideal for supplement sellers. Because of its various restrictions, online sellers like you will never be able to fully utilize its financial services.

    For long-term results, stick with a payment processor designed specifically for supplement sellers.

    DirectPayNet specializes in providing high-risk merchant accounts to sellers with business models like yours. We’ll connect you with a payment processor that backs your business so you can scale, no issue (even when you want to expand to cross-border sales). And one that uses the card networks you need, like Visa and Mastercard, or even ACH and crypto.

    Get in touch now to move away from Stripe and start your business right.

  • Stripe Shut Down My Account — How to Accept Credit Cards FAST

    Stripe Shut Down My Account — How to Accept Credit Cards FAST

    You’ve just been cut off from credit card processing by Stripe.com, and you’re in panic mode. There’s no time to waste—you need to get your gateway back up ASAP.

    Here’s the only guide you need to start processing credit card payments again after Stripe shuts down your account.

    Follow along below, watching this episode on Youtube, or listen on the go on Spotify.

    1. Open Another 3rd-Party Account

    Hear us out: we know how often we tell you to never use Stripe and how bad they are for the longevity of your business. And you’ve already suffered at the their hands. Trust us when we say we’re not sadists.

    You won’t be able to open an account back up. After Stripe account closure, that’s it. Stripe’s decision is final, even if you try to contact the Stripe support team for help. There’s a simple solution:

    Open another Stripe account. Or PayPal. Or Square. There are tons of 3rd-party payment processors you can choose from. You know how fast it is to open an account since you’ve done it already.

    This is the first step in sustainable online payment processing for your business. Open an account and within 24 hours, you’ll have a working payment gateway.

    Keep in mind, this is temporary. You don’t want to get shut down again. So immediately after you open a new account with your chosen 3rd-party processor, you need to start working on Step 2.

    2. Contact 3 Merchant Account Providers

    Once you’ve got your short-term Stripe account waiting for approval, you can go ahead and look for real merchant accounts.

    The Reason Your Stripe Account Is Shut Down

    The reason your Stripe account was shut down is because the company is very strict when it comes to what type of business they support.

    They aren’t a merchant account provider. In fact, they have their own merchant account with which they allow you to use as a sub-merchant.

    Know Your MCC

    Your merchant category code is what labels your business. You actually need one with each application, even on the one for Stripe. Some providers choose one for you or ask you a series of questions to have one chose automatically.

    Knowing this code will help you understand the high-risk industry you operate in. If you’ve been shut down by Stripe and need credit card processing fast, you’re likely in a high-risk industry.

    Those industries can be anything from coaching to dropshipping to adult content to subscription business models.

    Seek High-Risk Merchant Service Providers

    You are also free to get in touch with financial institutions about opening a high-risk merchant account on your own, but a payment service provider will have better connections and can streamline the process.

    You should contact 3 separate providers because each provider has their own connections to credit card processors and banks. You want to maximize your reach so you can quickly get a real merchant account as soon as possible without too much compromise on rates and pricing.

    Make Sure Banks Don’t Overlap

    3 providers means 3 opportunities. You don’t want to contact 3 and have all of them give you an offer from the same bank. Or worse, a decline.

    The more declines your business has, the less likely you’ll be able to successfully open a merchant account. Be cautious.

    What you can do is contact the first one and ask which bank they’ve chosen. Then get in touch with the second provider and inform them to not use that same bank. The same for #3, informing them of the other two banks you’ve applied with.

    3. Prepare an Application Package

    This step should be performed at the same time as Step 2 because you’ll want to use it with each provider. But when you need credit card processing ASAP, getting in touch with a good provider without an application package if the opportunity arises is perfectly fine.

    Every time you apply for a merchant account, there are several things that you always need. You might as well create a folder to easily access these files so you can submit them faster and get a response about your merchant account application quickly.

    Since Stripe shut down your account, you don’t want to waste any time gathering the same documents for every contact.

    What to Include

    Here’s what you want to include in your package:

    • Bank letter or voided check to confirm where funds will be deposited.
    • Previous processing history, which means you should download your Stripe processing history while you still have access to your account. CSV files are not accepted, it has to be a PDF with a summary of monthly sales, chargebacks, customer disputes, etc.
    • Bank statements so the provider can see your previous 3 months history.
    • Business info “cheat sheet“. If you have a member’s area on your site, you should provide a login for the provider. If you sell multiple packages or a lot of products, this is where you can provide a brief overview of what’s going on in your business. The cheat sheet is no more than 1 page.

    All of these documents help to give the merchant account provider a quick and easy way to confirm if they can support your business or not without risking a decline.

    4. Don’t Worry About the Tech Stuff

    Stay focused on simply getting that temporary Stripe account open and your merchant account applications going.

    There’s Always a Solution

    Of course, you want the processor you end up with to be compatible with your gateway and so on, but that’s always possible with a plugin or API integration. As long as the processor works with the credit card companies (Mastercard, Visa) and payment options your customers use most, then there’s no technical stuff to worry about.

    So don’t worry if you work on Shopify, which has limited direct plug-and-play functionality with gateways and other payment functions. You’ll be able to connect you cart in one way or another.

    Focus on the Merchant Account

    Get the new merchant account, get approved, and then you can deal with the tech stuff.

    If you get bogged down early on, then the process of getting a long-term solution to processing credit card payments on your online store gets further out of reach. You need to prioritize the merchant account, and then tackle the little things.

    5. Prep a Licensing Agreement

    This is an if-all-else-fails plan. If your closed account on Stripe leads to a ban, no one is accepting your merchant account applications, extremely high chargebacks, or you get MATCH-listed, this is your last hurrah.

    You want to keep selling, you have a profitable business, but you’ve unluckily reached this worst-case scenario. That’s where a licensing agreement can help.

    Do not hesitate to get in touch with your affiliates or potential partner business owners and ask them to sell the products for you.

    You would license out your product or service to these other people, they would sell on your behalf for a percentage of the sales.

    We know it doesn’t sound appealing, but if you believe in your ecommerce business and want to get it back on its feet, you should be willing to take the hit for a few months.

    Take Your First Step Now and Connect with a Merchant Account Provider

    In the end, time is of the essence – you don’t want your business to miss out on valuable sales just because Stripe has frozen your account. Follow the steps in this blog to get back online successfully.

    You can start Step 2 now by getting in touch with the team here at DirectPayNet. We specialize in providing merchant accounts for high-risk businesses and will be able to connect you with a payment processor and bank that will support your account.

    Contact us today to start your application.

  • Stripe backs crypto…again. Should you trust it?

    Stripe backs crypto…again. Should you trust it?

    The global payments company has been on and off about its point of view regarding crypto seemingly since crypto’s inception. Now, it seems the payments giant Stripe is firmly stepping back into the game. But is it safe for your business, or do Stripe’s same ol’ catches still apply?

    Stripe, the US-based fintech company, is going back into the crypto business.

    The San Francisco-based firm is partnering with FTX, a crypto exchange based in the Bahamas to provide payment processing services for crypto businesses. FTX US president, Brett Harrison, has been making many deals recently in the banking space.

    The company has processed bitcoin payments before but stopped when it decided that bitcoin was more of an asset than a currency in 2018. Stripe’s chief technology officer, David Singelmann, said they had been taking a second look at cryptocurrencies and came to the conclusion that “maybe it is actually time to try again”.

    Just last year, in 2021, Stripe announced interest in supporting crypto again.

    Stripe is aiming to support NFT marketplaces, crypto exchanges, and web3 businesses. Co-founder John Collison announced the features on Twitter.

    It’s an interesting perspective for a payment aggregator to take, seeing that their service relies so heavily on the processors they partner with. Not to mention a lot of flip-flopping between supporting crypto startups and flatlining.

    The company previously stopped accepting bitcoin in 2018, but has partnered with FTX to offer payment processing for crypto businesses.

    Stripe has gotten back into the world of cryptocurrencies, after previously halting business with crypto companies in February 2018. The company recently announced its partnership with the exchange FTX US based in the Bahamas.

    The move could be a big step for the evolution of cryptocurrency and its mass adoption by consumers. Last week, Stripe’s chief executive, Patrick Collison, said that the company would begin offering fiat API integrations for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other cryptocurrency withdrawals and deposits. This will allow consumers to pay for goods and services using cryptocurrency as well as traditional payment methods like credit cards and debit cards, which Stripe supports as-is.

    Here’s the catch: cryptocurrencies will always be converted to fiat, meaning you, as a merchant, won’t be able to hold crypto. Specifically, Stripe is building fiat-to-crypto on-ramps for businesses. Payouts are always in fiat currencies.

    While many people are asking whether or not you should use Stripe for cryptocurrency movements, the service is actually more aimed at crypto businesses.

    A quick refresher on the way payments work: there are four key components to a payment. There’s the person with the credit card, a merchant, who’s trying to sell something. Then there’s a payment processor who makes sure that they take your money from your account and give it to the merchant. And then there’s an acquirer or bank, who’s responsible for actually moving money between accounts.

    Stripe handles all of this for merchants (save for the money-moving part), which allows them to focus on their product instead of their customers’ payments. But Stripe isn’t a payment processor, it’s a payment aggregator. When you use stripe, you don’t have a merchant account, you just have a sliver of their merchant account. That means you have to abide by all the rules that all the payment processors Stripe actually works with, and—newsflash—none of them are ready to support high risk businesses like crypto exchanges or NFT sellers.

    If you run a business and want an easy way to accept crypto payments, Stripe won’t be competing directly with top crypto payment processors just yet either.

    The rise in popularity of NFTs as well as the increased security of the crypto industry in terms of KYC, anti-money laundering, and other requirements make cryptocurrency more appealing to Stripe.

    It’s no wonder then that Stripe has returned to its crypto support after a brief hiatus. The rise in popularity of non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, is one of the main factors driving the cryptocurrency trends. Non-fungible tokens are a type of cryptocurrency that allows you to buy and sell digital goods in a blockchain marketplace. Some examples of NFTs would be digital art, rare collectibles, land deeds for Decentraland, trading cards for Gods Unchained, and much more.

    In addition to the rise in popularity for NFTs as well as other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin (the most popular cryptocurrencies), there have also been more regulations put into place around businesses that use crypto than there were when Stripe initially stopped supporting crypto payments.

    Companies must now follow Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements which allow them to verify the identity of their customers and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) requirements which prevent criminals from using businesses like casinos or money launders to launder illegally obtained money into other accounts in order to hide it from law enforcement agencies.

    The crypto industry is increasing its stability and security with KYC, AML, and fraud prevention through techniques like identity verification.

    It specializes in helping businesses to develop internet payment systems, so most of its customers will be businesses and merchants rather than individuals.

    In short, Stripe’s crypto re-entry is not aimed at the average consumer. Instead, it specializes in helping businesses to offer online crypto payment solutions and support crypto businesses. While consumers may end up using Stripe’s new system indirectly through some of their favorite merchants and websites, there are no plans to make it available directly to consumers in the same way that they can use Venmo or PayPal.

    Stripe may help move cryptocurrencies forward but it’s not aimed at regular day users.

    Though Stripe will be adding support for crypto, it’s important to note that this is not a crypto wallet, nor is it intended to be used as one. If you’re looking for a place to hold your cryptocurrency purchases, or a means of exchanging your bitcoin into other coins and tokens like ether, neo or tron, you’ll have to look elsewhere. In fact, the whole Stripe process is designed so that customers never actually see their cryptocurrencies at all; rather than being transferred into their accounts as a digital asset like ether or litecoin, the value of the coin will immediately be converted into fiat currency and deposited directly into the merchants bank account.

    An interesting aspect of this development is that many merchants use Stripe with WooCommerce (the most popular eCommerce platform on WordPress), which has partnered with Coinbase Commerce for cryptocurrency payments integration since 2018. The two may eventually work together in tandem to provide an integrated solution for purchases with crypto assets.

    Stripe is still a payment aggregator. Even if they allow more crypto businesses to use their platform, businesses can expect strict limitations along the lines of what Stripe already places on their users.

    Stripe is a payment aggregator, not an autonomous crypto wallet.

    Even though Stripe accepts some crypto payments for itself, businesses that plan to use Stripe to accept crypto shouldn’t expect to receive their funds in cryptocurrency. As a payment aggregator and not a true merchant account, Stripe doesn’t have the ability to hold or transfer your funds. Instead, you’ll need an external wallet to receive and store your payments.

    While this may be convenient if you’re already using one of these services, it also means that you aren’t really accepting cryptocurrency; instead, you’re accepting fiat currency via Stripe. And if there’s anything we’ve learned about bitcoin over the past decade, it’s that holding your funds in fiat as opposed to BTC can be costly: just look at any altcoin exchange hackings or Mt Gox’s collapse (not to mention the other exchanges that have since followed suit).

    A high-risk business needs a high-risk processor, plain and simple.

    As a crypto merchant, you fall under the same umbrella that’s ever-prevalent when using Stripe (or any aggregate provider like PayPal and Square). You’re a high-risk business. Stripe doesn’t support high-risk businesses. Even when they make plans to support traditionally high-risk merchants like NFT sellers or dropshippers, they’re still at the beck and call of the payment processors they partner with.

    If anything, this new partnership is a ploy to get payment processors on board with Stripe so the company doesn’t fall as a powerhouse of the 2010s and nothing more. It’s for Stripe’s own longevity.

    Your best solution is to open your own merchant account. DirectPayNet provides crypto businesses with merchant accounts and connects you with payment processors that back your business for the long-term. Chat with us to open yours.

  • Why “Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation” Is Showing Up on Your Statement

    Why “Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation” Is Showing Up on Your Statement

    Did you receive a charge on your credit card statement that stated, “Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation”? You aren’t alone.

    This charge isn’t nothing to be scared of—as long as you recently made a purchase that’s along the lines of the charged amount.

    It’s possible that you’ve recently noticed charges to your credit or debit card that don’t look familiar. We’ve gotten a few questions about these charges and wanted to explain what they are and why they’re showing up on your credit card statement or PayPal account.

    What does “EEA” stand for?

    EEA stands for the European Economic Area. STEL stands for Short Term Establishment License. The license is used by companies domiciled in the EEA to process electronic payments on behalf of EEA-domiciled merchants.

    What does “STEL” mean?

    STEL stands for Short Term Establishment License. The license is used by companies domiciled in the EEA to process electronic payments on behalf of EEA-domiciled merchants.

    What does “Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation” mean?

    Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation can be broken down like this:

    • Stripe = Stripe, the payment aggregation company
    • EEA = European Economic Area
    • STEL = Short Term Establishment License
    • Aggregation = A collection of fees/charges

    Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation is a payment processing fee. When you make a purchase, the merchant pays a percentage of your transaction amount to their payment processor. In this case, it’s Stripe checkout.

    Some banks show the merchant’s name on their customers’ statements, but others show the payment processor instead. In those cases, you may see Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation on your statement instead of the merchant’s name.

    Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation is not a subscription or recurring charge.

    Fun Fact: an aggregator in terms of payments processing is a 3rd-party service (e.g., Stripe, PayPal, Square) that processes payments using a single merchant account with sub-accounts given to its users. It’s not a payment processor on its own, it’s simply a merchant offering a share of its processing power.

    What is “stripe eea stel aggregation dublin”?

    Sometimes, this appears as “stripe eea stel aggregation dublin 2”.

    When this shows up, it means your payment is being processed by the Dublin entity instead of the UK-regulated one Stripe billing usually uses.

    What is “stripe eea stel aggregation amex”?

    If you are an Amex cardholder, you may have noticed “Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation” on your statement.

    Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation is a payment processing platform that allows merchants to process payments in currencies other than the traditional USD currency.

    Stripe also has a partnership with American Express to allow merchants to accept payments through the American Express network. Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation Amex is a platform that allows users to pay for products and services using their Amex cards in over 100 currencies around the world.

    For Customers: Why do I see STEL aggregation on my statement?

    If you see Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation on your statement, it means that the merchant has enabled this option in its account settings which adds extra expenses to the bank account during transactions.

    The merchant has to pay these fees over time, which is why they pass these costs onto customers.

    For US Customers

    If you see this on your bank statement, then it means the e-commerce store operates from the EEA. The store might have charged you in USD using dynamic currency conversion (DCC), and that’s why you weren’t aware it was a European store.

    Now, because it is a non-US store, there are other fees incurred in the transaction like currency conversion fees and possibly VAT (value-added tax) or other operational fees. These are being passed on to you by the merchant so the store doesn’t have to pay it.

    For EU Customers

    The Stripe API enables businesses in the European Economic Area (EEA) to accept online payments in the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA). Stripe charges a fee on all payments processed through Stripe. When customers pay using SEPA Direct Debit or SEPA Credit Transfer, these fees are listed on their statement as “Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation”.

    Stripe has a legal obligation to make sure merchants charge customers in the EEA a special fee called a “value added tax” (or “VAT”) in addition to the regular amount of fees paid by customers.

    The charges appearing on your bank statements might appear different than what you typically see. Whenever a merchant in the EEA sends you an invoice, it will include a line item called “Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation.”

    In some cases, Stripe aggregates all of their EEA customers’ Stripe fees onto one invoice and bill them on the merchant’s behalf. Total fees for these customers are then charged all at once, which is why you may see a large charge from Stripe to your credit card or debit card.

    For Merchants: Why am I seeing STRIPE EEA STEL Aggregation on my merchant statement?

    If you’re a Stripe user who has recently gone to check your statements, you may have noticed a new line item on your statement that reads “Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation.”

    This is not a fee. Rather, it is a reporting item intended to meet European Union requirements under the financial services directive known as PSD2. It indicates that the amount being reported was aggregated.

    PSD2 is European regulation that requires Strong Customer Authentication (like 2FA and PCI compliance in the US).

    What you’re seeing here is a payment processing fee that’s been itemized on your statement. The fee covers the costs of collecting and aggregating your payments in the U.S., then transferring those funds to your account in the European Economic Area (EEA).

    The fee may appear as Stripe EEA STEL Aggregation, Stripe EEA ACH Aggregation, or simply Aggregator Fee.

    For Customers: What should I do about seeing “stel aggregation” on my credit card statement?

    Nothing.

    If you’ve recently made a purchase from an online store, then you can do some investigating. Go to their website and see what country they operate from. If it’s in the EEA, then this charge is from them.

    Alternatively, you can contact your own bank or credit card company and ask them to get you more information.

    HOWEVER, if you did not make a recent online purchase or the charge appears suspiciously high, then you can dispute it through your bank. Keep in mind that this is the last resort option, so please do some investigating first.

    For Merchants: What should I do about “stripe eea stel aggregation” appearing on my customers’ statements?

    We’ve written up a few tips you can follow to minimize the number of chargebacks or refund requests you receive due to this extra charge. You can read those by clicking here. Below, you’ll find the bullet points.

    Notify Your Customers Via Email

    When customers receive their receipt of purchase from your store, include this line item in the email.

    The best way is to have a graphic or screenshot of what the charges might look like. This prevents customers from freaking out and immediately hitting the big red refund button.

    Change Your Descriptor

    Rather, you can add information to your descriptor that could notify customers or at least their bank about upcoming additional charges.

    Changing your descriptor anyway can help with fraud prevention in terms of friendly fraud. Your stripe.com account backend will give you options for your descriptor, so log into your Stripe account and make sure it displays what you want. While you’re back there, you should look into Stripe Radar for even more fraud protection as well as SDKs and plugins that can help with your descriptor.

    Opt Out

    This is a service you can opt out of if you’re operate in the EEA. IT’s a shortcut to entering individual transactions, but this extra charge is the consequence and can lead to an increase in chargebacks.

    Simply opt out of using it and you’re good to go. Since you use Stripe payments, the option should be in the backend of your account. If you can’t find it, call or email Stripe customer service and they’ll get it fixed for you.

    Open a Merchant Account

    Stripe is not a merchant account nor is it a payment processor. That’s why things get messy when you try to expand or offer services that simply cannot provide.

    While Stripe supports major payment methods like credit cards from American Express, MasterCard, and Visa, it may not offer all the options your customers need.

    The best solution is to open your own high-risk merchant account. DirectPayNet provides merchant accounts to online businesses, connecting them with a payment processor that supports their business type. We’ll also set you up with a shopping cart and payment gateway that works with your payment service provider.

    With your own merchant account, you’ll be able to accept credit card payments via card number, Apple Pay, or even in-person payments via card readers and a POS. Customize it to your needs—even the pricing.

    This is the only way to truly, 100%, get rid of the stripe eea stel aggregation line item.

    Contact us to open your own merchant account. Free your business from the flood of chargebacks and your customers from the confusion.