mario parisi - MSI Merchant Services

Pro�les in payments: Mario Parisi
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MARIO
PARISI
Merchant acquiring is not a business for the fainthearted.
Ask Mario Parisi, COO at Merchant Services Inc., a 20year-old
ISO headquartered in Union, N.J.
"I work three times harder than most," said Parisi. Not
that he's all about work. "I work hard, and I play hard," he
added. The payoff has been good for Parisi, who joined
the company 18 years ago and has helped transform MSI
into a nationwide player in the ISO world.
"I work three times
harder than most. ...
We're �ghting our
battles on the front
lines every day."
Parisi's tenure at MSI has been one of great change for
ISOs and their MLSs. Perhaps no change has been more
notable in his mind than the migration from terminal leasing
to giveaways, a model he, like many of his peers, considers
unsustainable.
"There are so many companies out there who think giving
away profit margins on the front-end and making it up
in volume later is the way to go," Parisi said. It's proven
a faulty assumption, especially as the economy (and
spending) slows, he suggested.

He said the result is "a lot of people are hurting because
their business models are not working as planned." Not
so for MSI and it's sales partners. "The people around us
are making money," Parisi said.
MSI pays residuals to roughly 400 agents every month.
The company reports a base of 80,000 active merchants
and annual bankcard volume in excess of $10 billion.
Like most ISOs, MSI's business is not limited to bank
cards; it includes check and gift and loyalty programs, as
well as its own Internet gateway.
Parisi attributes the success of MSI and his tenure there
to good marketing, a good business model, loyalty and
respect. "We are a solid company with solid financials
that gives out good deals," he said. "We do not bait
and switch."
And he is ever mindful of the competition. "We're fighting
our battles on the front lines every day," Parisi said.
O.B.
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