AUSTRALIAN FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS

How do the Australian Financial Institutions rate as Internet ready? They sure are making some great noises about how good their services are......so IBS puts them to some little 'ol tests....Internet Merchant Accounts

Internet Merchant Accounts

The account needed to host secure transactions on your web site...

Three tests in one here...search engine savvy, customer service, product.

Searched the term "Internet Merchant Account" in Anzwers, Yahoo Australia & Excite Australia and then E-mailed the following Australian Financial Institutions requesting information on:

a) Do you have an Internet Merchant Account facility?

b) What are the transaction fees and charge associated with the facility?

Westpac Bank [ www.westpac.com.au ]

Commonwealth Bank [ www.commbank.com.au ]

National Australia Bank [ www.national.com.au ]

St George [ www.stgeorge.com.au ]

ANZ [ www.anz.com.au ]

Suncorp Metway [ www.suncorpmetway.com.au ]

The Results

Search: ANZ was the only one I found
[of course I didn't go past the first 3 result pages] 

Email sent 11pm Wednesday 12th July 2000

First information response: ANZ (Email reply 8.25am next day with information, link to more information and a telephone contact number)

Second information response: Suncorp Metway (Telephone call 5pm Friday from man in merchant services but couldn't help with Internet Merchant Account, said he would arrange someone to E-mail the details)

The others?

Westpac: Auto Email confirmation said they will endeavor to respond in 24 hours (they didn't) Here is a link to what they offer, but no info on how to actually get it...click here

St George: all the info was available online, but no response to E-mail

Commonwealth: They did have some good info on what they offer, but no details on transaction fees, and no email reply. There is a 24 hour phone number.

National: Not a great deal of info available online and would have to say that their web site was the hardest to use.

Recommendations:

Pretty obvious that ANZ is the pick of this bunch for service and also seen to be a bit more Internet savvy as well...which is an important thing to us Internet Entrepreneurs. 

ANZ eGATE can be found here

Probably followed by St George and Commonwealth.

Any other Financial Institutions offer this facility? please contact the editor