News

Interac, ICC partnership enables U.S. merchant certification for Canadian card transactions

January 19, 2018

Canadians will be able to use chip technology through the Interac Debit service at more U.S. merchant locations as the result of a partnership between Interac Association/Acxsys Corp. and ICC Solutions, a cross-border debit certification provider.

Through the agreement, ICC Solutions becomes a preferred chip certification vendor for Interac in the U.S., facilitating testing support for U.S. merchants and acquirers and validating Interac certification results in accordance with its U.S. specifications.

"We've seen an increased appetite amongst U.S. merchants to better serve their Canadian consumers when it comes to cross-border payments," Edwin Lam, director of international products at Interac, said in the release. "ICC Solutions will help us bring the Interac Debit service's chip and pin payments to more merchants across the U.S., offering Canadians a more secure way to pay across the border."

The Interac Debit service allows consumers to pay for purchases with their own money, straight from their bank account, at a comparatively low acceptance cost for merchants, the release said.