Princess Charlotte's Commemorative Baptism Coin

A Commemorative coin is to be issued for the Baptism of United Kingdom's Princess Charlotte. She was born on May 2nd and her Baptism took place on July 5th.

The coin is decorated with lily and two angels playing the harp, are reminiscent of Princess Charlotte and her 2 year old brother, Prince George.

The center of the coin is imprinted with the words, "To celebrate the Christening of Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana of Cambridge 2015"

If you would like to order this coin, you can do so from the link below. 

http://www.royalmint.com/our-coins/events/royal-christening

But really,the Prince and Princess are so adorable

The Figure on the American Express Card

This logo and design that we have all come to recognize as American Express made a debut back in 1958.

Back then, the description of this design was "Gladiator on a shield"
The last time American Express mentioned anything about it's logo was back in 1989 when there was a law suite against Vibra Approved Laboratories over its trademark design. 

However we don't hear much about this  individual so I thought I'd share some interesting facts about him today. This is a design of a gladiator and not a viking  Many people will also confuse the portrait as a centurion solider; most likely because AMEX issues the Centurion Card through its American Express Centurion Bank; but he is not. 

A centurion is an army commander from ancient Rome. Gladiators were present during the same time period, however they had a very different role in society. Gladiators were mostly slaves and prisoners who were forced to battle to the death as a form of entertainment for the rich. They fought against wild animals as well each other, either to win their freedom, or just to survive.  
There are critics who say that the head gear on the American Express logo resembles that of a Centurion rather than a Gladiator's. You can tell that a Centurion's headpiece is significantly more luxurious than one of a Gladiators. 

　　　　　　　　　

Centurion

Gladiator

Many times, movies and TV shows like to exaggerate costumes and props and do not accurately portray historical facts (which are less dramatized.) Perhaps the person who first drew the picture was influenced by these images and thought the logo he drew was an accurate representation of a Roman Gladiator. 

Regardless, the image does not seem to be any specific person of importance from history, rather a simple drawing of a confused, historically inaccurate artist.  

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What does it mean to be a High Risk Merchant?

Have you ever wondered what kind of business would be considered as high risk to merchant service providers? 

Regardless of the type of business, be it restaurants or retail, if the charge back proportion (the amount of payments denied) exceeds 1%, the business would normally be categorized has a high risk merchant and the deal may even be considered as impossible to make 
Even if the business receives telephone solicitation, door-to-door sales, MLM, or is reached out from an order processing agency, once the account is viewed, the business would still be considered as high risk

On the other hand, if the owner of a regular restaurant or small retail store has bad credit history, there is also a possibility the business would be deemed as high risk  
Businesses dealing with high ticket items, or if the volume of transaction is significantly higher than normal, they may also be considered as high risk. 

Here are a few industries that are often treated as high risk: electronic cigarette, medical marijuana, adult store industries, collection agencies, dietary supplement, weapons dealer, tourism, foreign exchange trading, sports information industry and online education. 

It is important to remember that services or commodity stores who charge the customers earlier than when the service or product is delivered have higher charge backs than normal
This would also apply to subscriptions and online memberships.

Of course illegal services, or anything close to it is automatically high risk and may not even be considered for merchant services 

However, remember that just because corresponds to the about mentioned business type, it does not mean that establishing a merchant account is impossible. By changing the payment method, or eliminating some products handled, you may be able to resolve some of the issues that would cause your business to be high risk.

Sometimes, a merchant is willing to allow transaction if you agree to a make a deposit, keep a reserve, or agree to a monthly limit. Through this, you are able to build a trust relationship with the processor and makes it possible for the merchant to help you later on. Having a continuous relationship with a merchant can be an advantage for your business.  

For more information, please contact us 

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