4 Ways Chip Card Technology Will Impact Retail Businesses

By the end of 2015, U.S. financial institutions will issue 600 million EMV or chip cards — roughly half of all cards in circulation, according to the EMV Migration Forum. The new card improves fraud protection for consumers and changes the way businesses accept payment.

How will it affect retail businesses?

Improved Security with Chip Cards

EMV — an acronym for Europay, MasterCard and Visa — is a payment application that resides in a computer chip embedded in a credit or debit card. The chip card performs cryptographic processing by assigning a unique code to each transaction to help prevent data from being fraudulently reused.

Change of Payment Method at Businesses

EMV technology will be the standard payment application for enhanced security. Although the chip card still features a magnetic stripe, businesses will need to make changes to point-of-sale equipment that allow consumers to “dip” their chip card rather than swiping to make a payment.

Liability Shift

Merchants who do not upgrade to EMV acceptance for point-of-sale transactions will start bearing financial liability for certain kinds of counterfeit card transactions.

Important Date for Businesses: Oct. 1, 2015

Businesses of all sizes have until Oct. 1 to get new card readers and software. This deadline was set by major payment card companies. If businesses don’t meet the deadline, they will be liable for fraudulent transactions made by phony credit cards.

Vectra Bank wants to help prepare your business for this transition, and we will provide more information on the EMV transition in the coming months. As always, if you have any questions, please contact your Banker, Treasury Management Officer, or Merchant Services Operations at 800–341–8156 or tmsupport@vectrabank.com, Monday through Friday, 7:30 am to 5:30 pm MT.