There are some important changes coming to MasterCard this year regarding their BIN ranges and it affects any business that wishes to accept their card types.
What is a BIN range? BIN stands for Bank Identification Number and it’s the first six digits on a credit card that is used to identify the specific bank that issued the card and to route each sale correctly.
Why is this important? Coming soon in 2017, MasterCard is introducing a whole new BIN range starting with the number 2 (222100-272099). Traditionally all MasterCard credit lines have started with the number 5 so this will be a huge update for all types of softwares, point-of-sale (POS) systems or terminals that want to accept this very popular card type. If a system cannot identify this new valid BIN range, the card will reject and loss of sale/customer is at risk along with potential penalties from MasterCard.
What do I need to do? In preparation for these new BIN ranges from MasterCard, all merchants must review their payment systems to ensure the latest updates are installed by June 30, 2017. Doing this will allow the new MasterCards to be accepted at your business without incident. Follow specific direction below for your environment:
- Virtual Terminal through Wind River – if you utilize a virtual terminal through Wind River such as TrustCommerce, NMI or Paytrace, no action is needed – all updates have already been completed to accept the MasterCard BIN ranges.
- Terminals – In the case that a business is operating on an older terminal (“End of Life” Equipment/No longer manufactured), you will need to replace it. If you are unsure, contact Wind River and we can either order you an updated terminal or simply update the software inside the terminal if applicable. Please call us at 1-800-704-7253 x6828 to discuss.
- POS or Software – If you work with a POS or specific software at your business, contact your reseller to verify that your system will be able to support the new MasterCard BINs.
- E-Commerce – If you accept payments through your website contact your shopping cart provider or your website provider.
We want our clients to avoid any potential fines from MasterCard at all costs so if you are unsure on next steps or simply have a question, please call and speak to one of our Relationship Managers at 1-800-704-7253 x6828 or email us at info@windriverfinancial.com. We’d be glad to help walk you through your options. For more information regarding this change from MasterCard, please visit MasterCard’s website directly here.
