BIN database stands in the center of the process of any online transaction. It is the primary information based on which a business is able to verify the authenticity of a payment received from its customer. BIN database holds information such as the name of the bank issuing a credit or debit card, the country in which the card was issued, the type of the card. The extent of the information on a BIN database can vary and the companies should buy a suitable database to match their requirement.

What businesses are looking for in a BIN database is mainly accuracy, relevance, dependency and cost-effectiveness. Like any other product, it would not be a worthwhile investment if BIN database is unable to reduce fraudulent transactions for the company. When a customer makes a payment using a credit card, debit card or prepaid card, the card number is verified to make sure that the payment made is genuine and to ensure that the specified amount will in fact be credited to the account of the business. The process of verification is done by running the BIN number, i.e the first six digits that appear on the credit, debit or prepaid card through a BIN database.
The BIN is a unique number, which identifies the bank that issued the card, the country in which it is issued etc. A good BIN database should cover well over a thousand banks and hold a large number of BIN records. A small BIN database may not be able to validate all the payments, making the entire exercise quite futile. BIN database should also be up to date, otherwise it cannot be useful. There are free online BIN databases available, however a well developed, professional BIN database can go a long way in saving money for the company by reducing the incidents of fraudulent transactions.

Toh! Na who I go ask?