4 ms·
You are useless in Canada without Interac (debit, but not really from a US POV [1]). This is the number one choice of payment in Canada. Hell, I don't even carr
by run4yourlives 14y ago
You are useless in Canada without Interac (debit, but not really from a US POV [1]). This is the number one choice of payment in Canada. Hell, I don't even carry cash anymore because Interac is near universal.
It's going to be difficult to gain traction for Square if they are offering businesses a solution that only provides half of what the competition does, even if it is cheaper.
Square has - unless they know something they aren't saying - massively misunderstood the reality of the marketplace in Canada. It is not the US with funny tax laws. In the realm of consumer banking/payment, we are light years ahead of the US in certain key ways.
1. In Canada, our bank/atm cards are our debit cards. The entire system is linked with a joint network called Interac. When you open a bank account you get a chip/PIN enabled card that allows you to make direct withdraws from ATMs, as well as instantly buy something from a terminal at a store. Credit Card providers are shut out of this system, and its 100% penetration with Canadian banks has made it the primary consumer choice for payments. Yes, security is a bit of an issue, hence the high rate of chip adoption in Canada. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interac http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interac
- herge 14y agoIn all fairness, interact involves fees for the consumer (depending on which bank you are with), and, outside of students who may not be eligible for the, almost everybody has credit cards.
- kerryfalk 14y agoWhich fees? On rare occasions some retailers try to charge a small fee at the point of sale on debit payments but I've never heard of a fee for the consumer to use debit. I don't use cash and haven't for years. I only pay with debit.
- run4yourlives 14y agoSome banks charge a "$x fee per transaction". This has gone out of style though because of competition. The practice of charging $x to use your card (whatever it is) by smaller businesses is actually against their terms of service and you can technically report them.
- run4yourlives 14y agoYou aren't incorrect; nonetheless interac is the number one choice of Canadians when it comes down to paying for something. In fact in 2000, Interac Direct Payment surpassed cash as Canadians' preferred method of payment,7 and debit card payments have continued to grow.[1] Offering credit cards only is a bad choice for a business, since Canadians will be looking to use Interac as well. The entire "debit card" market as Americans understand it doesn't exist in Canada for exactly this reason. Re: Fees - Many banks now offer no fee debit usage. Such as my credit union - Coast Capital Savings. I haven't paid a surcharge on my debit card use since like 2001. 1. http://www.cba.ca/en/media-room/50-backgrounders-on-banking-issues/616-canadas-efficient-and-secure-payments-system http://www.cba.ca/en/media-room/50-backgrounders-on-banking-...
- deleted 14y ago[deleted]
- amccloud 14y agoIn the US our bank/atm cards are our debit cards. I don't see how that is light years ahead of the US.
- clauretano 14y agoInterac is like the system in the states without Visa or MasterCard in the middle profiting.
- msbarnett 14y agoOur debit cards don't have credit card companies man-in-the-middling the transactions, instead using a standardized network governed by a non-profit. Also the debit system has been ubiquitous for 28 years.
- jammur 14y agoYou're correct about the current state of payments in Canada, but many Canadian banks are now issuing Visa debit cards similar to the debit cards issued by American banks.
- msbarnett 14y agoVisa and Mastercard have been trying to muscle out the Interac consortium so that they can charge higher fees, but with mercifully little success so far.