Updated on November 22, 2021
TSYS or Total System Services provides credit card processing services across the world. This review will introduce you to all the aspects related to working with TSYS, from contracts and equipment to fees and security.
The platform first came into being in the early 1950s in Omaha and currently operates in several continents, including the Middle East, Asia, Europe, and South America. However, an important breakthrough in the history of its existence came about in 2016 when it acquired TransFirst to expand its reach to more businesses.
Only three years later in 2019, it was announced that Global Payments will merge, or more accurately acquire TSYS. As a result of the merger, it was decided that TSYS will take the name of Global Payments and the company will have headquarters in Georgia, Columbus and Atlanta.
What Services Does It Provide?
As a major part of its job, TSYS is responsible for issuing merchant accounts and setting you up to take credit cards depending on your convenience. It offers several terminals to assist credit card payments such as:
Traditional POS terminals
With traditional processing, you can carry out transactions through a POS terminal that TSYS can set up for you. This way, you’ll be able to accept different payments through Visa, American Express, MasterCard, Discover, and even debit cards.
However, there’s no limit when it comes to the type of devices you can choose for accepting payments. While some are designed to accept simple payments, others can also perform more complex functions such as time tracking for employees and inventory management.
Smartphone processing
Even though it isn’t as common as other methods, smartphone credit card processing is becoming increasingly popular among retailers. TSYS can easily set your phone up with an application and a credit card reader to secure the inflow of payments. Moreover, smartphone processing also comes with encryption to protect your customer’s data. This is particularly useful for businesses branched out to different locations.
B2B Processing
TSYS Solutions also support B2B processing, especially if you deal with a lot of commercial credit cards. Since there aren’t enough services to deal with commercial card processing, it’s important to have the right system in place and save -money in the long run.
Website processing
As more and more businesses have started operating online, the need for a safe online processing terminal has also increased. While many people believe it’s too risky to deal with online payments, TSYS has solutions to help you through it such as multiPASS and TSYS Hosted Payment.
Pricing
Generally speaking, there are three pricing packages offered by TSYS:
Pursue: It consists of a 2.5% swiped rate, 3.5% keyed rate, $0.20 for every transaction, and a monthly fee of up to $9.95.
Grow: The Grow package consists of a 1.99% swiped rate, 3.1% keyed rate, $0.20 for every transaction, and a monthly fee of up to $19.95. It also gives you a minimum volume of $100,000.
Accelerate: This package has a swiped rate of 1.7%, keyed rate of 3.0%, a per-transaction fee of up to $0.20, and a monthly fee of $49.95. The minimum volume you can enjoy with this package is $250,000.
Apart from no fee for setup, you will also get a credit card reader and machine free of cost to ensure smooth credit card processing.
Is TSYS Secure?
TSYS is one of the very few platforms in the world of processing that takes security very seriously. Apart from PCI validation and Trustwave, it also offers another set of tools, called the Guardian Security Suite to ensure maximum protection.
The cherry on top, if there’s a case of a data breach, it also pays you up to $100,000 as part of its C-CAP security solutions. In case of fraud and hacking, there’s also assistance available in the form of credit monitoring and replacement, etc.
What Type of Contract Requirements Are There?
Typically, TSYS has a three-year-long contract that renews automatically. In case of early termination, you may be charged an amount of over $250. However, the fees and other terms are subject to change. Make sure you review them carefully.
Reviews
TSYS definitely enjoys the benefit of being one of the largest companies for credit card processing. For one, it does not have as many negative reviews as other competitors in the market. Moreover, it has also successfully maintained a reputation over the years by having the lowest amount of negative reviews. However, we do not recommend emphasizing reviews if you do consider availing services from TSYS.
For a company that has been accredited with the BBB or the Better Business Bureau for the last 11 years, it is well-respected. It also has an A+ rating. All in all, there are less than 60 complaints in the last three years and most of them are linked to:
- Product/service problems
- Billing issues
- Advertising or sales issues
- Guarantee/warranty issues
As per a few customers, there were unauthorized debit funds deducted even after account cancellation. However, the nature of these complaints has still not been identified completely. Since most of the listed complaints get resolved immediately, the client satisfaction rate is usually high. Thanks to the prompt customer service quick responses to existing complaints, most negative reviews are usually taken down.
Awards and Achievements
It should also be noted that TSYS has often been recognized for its efforts to improve credit card processing constantly. In 2006, TSYS secured a place in several nominations such as Forbes list of America’s best employers, Thomson Reuters Top 100, and many more.
In conclusion, trusting a service, especially with credit cards requires a thorough understanding of the terms and conditions that come with it. Nonetheless, TSYS has set a benchmark in the world of processing that is surely hard to meet for any other service.
