Cannabis use and sale have slowly become a regulated industry. 66% of Americans favor legalizing cannabis. However, financial institutions are still lagging behind by not providing financial services to customers in the cannabis industry.
More often than not, those visiting cannabis dispensaries do not have enough cash on hand and choose not to use ATMs in the dispensaries. Luckily, there are options for processing dispensary cards.
Point of Banking
This payment method is still unpopular, not only in the cannabis industry but in others as well. Some know it as a cashless ATM. The point of banking payment method allows customers to access their bank accounts at the dispensaries or point of sale. There is no cash involved as the money goes directly to the dispensary’s bank account. Customers pay in $5 increments and pay a convenience charge.
Cannabis Merchant Accounts
Some financial institutions might choose not to allow you to open an account if you are in the cannabis business. Approving an ATM for a cannabis dispensary is also difficult; thus, many dispensaries do not have such provisions for customers.
On top of that, a non-cannabis business account has higher trade-off fees than a cannabis account. This higher fee is due to additional compliance requirements by the financial institution. These are just examples of how you would carry out your transactions. How do you choose the right one?
Consider the transparency and reputation
The cannabis card processing company must be upfront about its fees. They must also support the cannabis community and understand all the customers’ needs. Whether you have a medical card or an adult-use card, the company must accommodate you. The company’s interaction with marijuana merchant accounts is also crucial to evaluate.
POS integration
The payment processing software must conduct seamless transactions to the merchant’s bank account. Since there is no ATM for cannabis dispensing, the merchant must ensure the numbers are correct at the end of the shift. With POS integration, tracking is possible since every payment has a transaction ID.
Reliability
Whatever platform you use must be quick to alert in case of system breakdowns. Choose the method with multiple processors to prevent service outages. By 2025, the cannabis industry will be worth $30 billion. Every merchant wants to play a part in growing the sector. Selecting a reliable card processing partner is the first step in achieving this goal.
Scalability
Scalability is just as vital as reliability. A merchant needs to be sure that they can have a central system to handle different stores. In this case, a centralized payment system helps to save precious time that would otherwise go into growing the business.
Having to reconcile different payment platforms is a headache. Therefore, working with a trusted and flexible partner is a number one priority. Choosing the right cannabis dispensary card processor significantly influences your profit margins. The processing partner must understand what you and your customers are about.
After that, they should aim to make their services as efficient as possible and stand out as the best among numerous cannabis dispensary card processors.