

Ask HN: Best way to accept CC on behalf of 3rd party vendors - mikey7896

Let's say I wanted to build a marketplace with multiple vendors selling their goods. What is the easiest way to incorporate a payment system that accepts credit cards on behalf of the vendors?<p>I know my scenario is a little vague, but do I need a merchant account of my own to accept the credit card payments from customers, then "reimburse" the vendors after taking my cut?<p>Or is there a way to extend the vendors' existing merchant account functionality to the online/mobile space? E.g. a comic book store that normally processes credit card payments in store can now get credit card information electronically through the marketplace.<p>Does my question make sense?
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seanmccann
You would have to get your own merchant account and then distribute the
vendor's share. Another option might be to force the vendors to sign up for
Stripe and provide their API key to you. You could then make charges to their
Stripe account. The first options is a lot more seamless and gives you the
potential of charging a commission.

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kellros
Make sure to consider the cut the processors take (usually a flat rate + %).

The best model for e-commerce is cash upfront.

You take your cut then pass the money on does work, but friction (
processing/transfer cuts ) can amount to quite a lot.

Be very aware of the costs involved in doing this and related convenience type
scenarios like delivery.

