University Solves Online Payment Processing Problems

An outdated online credit card payment processing solution presented one eastern university with a number of problems. Because the system didn't process payments in real time, the university was unable to reconcile student accounts quickly. Also, because of the lag time, some students thought their payments were approved when they were not. These problems compelled the university to turn to TransActive Ecommerce Solutions Inc. (Halifax, Nova Scotia), a provider of online payment processing solutions, for help.

TransActive, working with credit card processor Moneris Solutions, Inc. (Buffalo Grove, IL), provided the university with an integrated solution comprising a payment gateway and reporting engine. Within three days, TransActive implemented the payment gateway to deliver a real-time payment processing solution. It also provided a remote query tool that allowed the university to extract payment data and format it for use in its enterprise resource planning system.

With the solution, the university is able to reconcile student accounts with the click of a button. Students receive an immediate notification as to whether or not their payment was approved, giving them the opportunity to use an alternate payment method if their credit card was declined. Also, by storing student credit card transaction data in TransActive's database, the university was able to eliminate the internal database where the data was once saved.

This successful implementation has opened the door to other projects at the university for TransActive. The payment processor and the university are in the planning stages of building a wireless solution that would enable students to use their cellular phones to replenish their student cards. The university will also be deploying point of sale applications that employ swipe card technology to process payments where a signature is required.