Westpac business customers now have more choice in the way they accept contactless payments, with Merchant Choice Routing now available for online payments.
Merchant Choice Routing, or MCR, gives businesses the choice to direct contactless debit card payments through the eftpos system, rather than being automatically processed through other networks, which can help reduce costs in accepting payments.
MCR has been available for Westpac customers for in-store payments since 2019 and is currently the default option for all new customers on simple pricing plans, with businesses needing to opt out if they don’t want MCR.
Westpac Managing Director of Cash & Transactional Banking, Mandy Rutherford, said: “Merchant choice routing is an important industry initiative that supports competition and helps give businesses more control over their costs.
“Expanding merchant choice routing to online payments gives our customers more choice in how they manage their transaction costs, and is part of our commitment to make it easier for businesses to do their banking,” she said.
Westpac is supporting existing customers to understand the benefits of MCR so they can make the switch easily if they choose. This includes providing customers access to real-time quotes to see if they can benefit from MCR. Westpac has also recently enabled MCR on all our small business pricing plans, including EFTPOS Air.
To enable MCR for online payments, businesses also require support from their chosen third party payment provider (or gateway), which must be certified with the eftpos scheme. Westpac customers can turn on MCR for e-commerce using any of Westpac’s accredited gateways, including our wholly owned partner, Qvalent.
