Magna Consulting Review
Brand Dissolved
As of this update, it appears Magna Consulting has completely dissolved and ceased operations. We will leave this review up from our last update for an account of the company’s previous operations.
From Chyp and Securus Payments
Launched in 2016, Magna Consulting is a merchant account provider that serves most standard risk business types. The company’s website lists its active payment processing partnerships with Electronic Payments, First Data, TSYS, and Pivotal Payments. According to public documents and comments, the company was founded by Tony Lemma (a relative of Chyp/Securus Payments owner Steven Lemma) and Jeff Sego, a former vice president of inside sales at Chyp and sales manager at Securus. It is unclear whether Steven Lemma is directly involved in Magna Consulting’s day-to-day operations, but there are clearly established links between Magna and other low-rated payment processors.
Magna Consulting Location and Ownership
Magna Consulting is headquartered at 12963 SE 155th Ave, Happy Valley, Oregon 97086, not far from Securus/Chyp’s address in Portland. Tony Lemma and Jeff Sego are the co-founders of Magna Consulting.
Magna Consulting Review Table of Contents
- Costs & Contract: Magna Consulting appears to offer a three-year contract with an early termination fee of $495.
- Complaints & Service: Magna Consulting has received fewer than 10 public complaints.
- BBB Rating: Magna Consulting does not have a profile with the Better Business Bureau at this time.
- Sales & Marketing: Magna Consulting appears to hire independent sales agents and telemarketers.
- Rates & Fees: How Merchants Got The Best Rates With Magna Consulting
Magna Consulting Customer Reviews
Here's What Their Clients Say
Key Points |
|
|---|---|
| Total Online Complaints | <10 |
| Live Customer Support | Yes |
| Most Common Complaint | N/A |
Moderate Complaint Total
We are currently able to locate only 1 negative Magna Consulting review, but this complaint does describe the company as a scam. It also alleges that Magna Consulting is effectively no different from Chyp and Securus in terms of its ownership team and operations. There is not a lot of merchant feedback about the company at this time, but its background provides some basis for assessing its customer service.
Magna Consulting Lawsuits
We have not found any outstanding class-action lawsuits or FTC complaints filed against Magna Consulting. Dissatisfied merchants who wish to pursue a non-litigious course of action against the company should consider reporting it to the relevant supervisory organizations.
Magna Consulting Customer Support Options
Magna Consulting offers live phone customer support to all of its merchants. This falls short of the amount of support that we expect from top-rated merchant accounts for customer service, but Magna Consulting’s complaint record has yet to indicate severe problems.
Magna Consulting Online Ratings
Here's How They Rate Online
No Profile Available
The Better Business Bureau does not maintain a profile for Magna Consulting at this time. We therefore will not factor a BBB rating into this review.
Magna Consulting Fees, Rates & Costs
A Closer Look at The Contract
Key Points |
|
|---|---|
| Swiped Rate | 1.00% - 4.99% |
| Keyed-In Rate | 1.00% - 4.99% |
| Monthly Minimum Fee | $25 |
| Early Termination Fee | $495 |
| PCI Compliance Fee | $159 Per Month |
| Equipment Lease Cost | $109 Per Month |
| Equipment Lease Terms | 48 Month (locked) |
Variable Contract Terms
We are unable to locate any specific Magna Consulting contract terms at this time, but it is likely that the company offers similar contract terms to Chyp. At least one merchant has stated that Chyp offers 48-month, non-cancellable equipment leases that can cost up to an exorbitant $109 per month. Securus has been known to offer very similar leases to its merchants, and it is common for Securus merchants to claim that their sales agents promoted very low rates and fees while failing to disclose the company’s exorbitant equipment leasing costs.
Securus Payments’ Contract Terms
If Magna Consulting’s basic merchant account contract terms are anything like Securus Payments‘ contract terms, then they likely involve a three-year contract through First Data with an early termination fee of $495 and other miscellaneous fees, including a monthly minimum of $25, a $159 annual PCI compliance fee, and a variable monthly statement fee. Merchants should be prepared to negotiate in order to obtain favorable pricing.
Not Especially Competitive
In general, there is very little indication that Magna Consulting offers markedly different pricing or contract terms from those offered by Chyp. This would rank it well below the cheapest merchant account providers.
Magna Consulting Employee Reviews & Sales Tacitcs
Should You Work For Them?
Key Points |
|
|---|---|
| Employs Independent Resellers | Yes |
| Advertises Deceptive Rates | No |
| Discloses All Important Terms | No |
Telemarketing and Outside Agents
We are unable to determine the specific of Magna Consulting’s marketing approach, but it is likely that the company uses a team of telephone appointment setters combined with a large number of independently contracted outside sales agents. This marketing strategy is frequently associated with high complaint totals in the credit card processing industry and has resulted in a large number of negative reviews for Chyp and Securus. We are currently unable to locate any Magna Consulting sales complaints, but the company appears to be relatively small compared to its affiliated organizations.
Equipment Lease Marketing
Chyp’s approach to selling equipment leases appears to be in practice at Magna Consulting as well, as illustrated by a commenter below our Chyp review:
Tony Lemma started a new company called MAGNA PROCESSING. Same building as Securus. Same bullshit scam. Same terrible rates and huge leases to pay off his crappy life. Do NOT do business with them. Steve lemma his older brother finds his life and company so just think SECURUS PAYMENTS (FRAUD) when you think of MAGNA. Anything with LEMMA in it, RUN AWAY. SCAM
More of the Same?
Due to the above comment and the company’s pedigree, we do not expect Magna Consulting’s sales approach to differ significantly from that of Chyp or Securus. If you suspect that a Magna Consulting representative has included undisclosed fees in your contract, we recommend a third-party statement audit to find and eliminate hidden costs.
Our Magna Consulting Review Summary
Our Final Thoughts
Connected To Low-Rated Processors
Magna Consulting receives an average rating at this time according to our criteria. The company’s rating is more a product of its corporate background and ownership team than of merchant feedback at this point, so our assessment may change over time. For now, merchants are advised to regard the company’s sales agents and contract terms with caution due to its ties to some of our worst-rated credit card processors.
If you found this article helpful, please share it!
About The Author
Your Comments & Reviews
How Did Magna Consulting Treat You?7 Responses
Leave a reply
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Copyright
Copyright © 2023 CardPaymentOptions.com, Inc. (Digital Fingerprint: 0d38c6720f0d78a701b74d58653af608). Getting paid to re-write this page? Click here to earn a reward.
Any unauthorized copying and reproduction of the content of this page, including all meta data and computer code, is strictly prohibited. While the information in the above article is believed to be accurate as of its publish date, the author and publisher make no representation or warranties with respect to the accuracy, applicability, fitness, or completeness of the contents. The author and publisher shall in no event be held liable to any party for any direct, indirect, punitive, special, incidental or other consequential damages arising directly or indirectly from any use of this material, which is provided “as is,” and without warranties. Any and all use of trade names and/or marks are for identification purposes only and shall not be construed as a claim of affiliation, or otherwise, with CardPaymentOptions.com, Inc. ("CPO") in any form. The sole purpose of the material presented herein is to alert, educate, and inform readers. It is not intended as legal or financial advice. We may earn revenue if you obtain services from a provider that we recommend. See this page to learn how we support our operations.
FTC Advertising Disclosure
We take great pride in providing one of the only objective an unbiased merchant account review websites on the internet. To support this responsibility, we may in some cases, but not all, earn revenue if you choose a service provider that we have fully researched and vetted. We only recommend providers that we have determined to be safe for our readers. We do not accept payment, gifts, or any other bribes in exchange for postive reviews or ratings. We care about doing right by our readers.
Show disclosure
Popular Merchant Account Research
Related Industry Research
Industry Specific Findings
Low Cost Processor of 2023
Helcim Payments
No Monthly or Annual Fees
Super Low Processing Rates
POS, Mobile, and Online Payments
Sales & Support: (888) 506-7812
Louis Moskow
I am so disappointed in myself for letting Tony Lemma & Jeff Sugo rip me off over $8000.00 on a credit card machine that goes for around $125.00 new. The leased machine is now broken and there is no compensation what so ever. The scam goes like this. They sell you a lease for the machine and take the sale price in full and turn the lease over to a third party and pocket the cash. I missed this scam in the shuffle of paperwork attached to the credit card processing itself.
They then lie and tell you they make nothing on the processing which they do.
It’s a smoke screen to sell overpriced equipment and fake wholesale CC processing.
Nothing short of dishonest thieves.
Tony Lemma
Hi Jay,
After reviewing your account we do see you fully accepted the terms of your agreement. In fact we have call recordings of you verbally accepting everything needed for your POS system. Since we only make $50 a month on your account it would be impossible for you to save $750 a month else where. We would love to explain everything to you so you may better understand the programs on the market and make sure you were not duped by another company trying to get your business. Lastly, Jeff Sego your old rep more than likely has not answered, because he no longer is with Magna Consulting. If you would like to speak to someone in regards to your accounts and getting help please contact us at 866-329-8856. I hope this helps in resolving misinformation you were given by a competitor.
CPO
Tony,
Could you authenticate the name and location of the business you are commenting on behalf of?
-Phillip
Tony Lemma
Magna consulting and we are located in Portland, OR
Thanks!
CPO
Thanks Tony.
-Phillip
Ron K
Tony I noticed on your website
you do not have your aquiring bank listed at the bottom of the page. I am pretty sure that this is required by law.
Jay Sexton
one star review. Was lied to about what a $70 per month fee was actually for. I was told it was for processing fees and was normal. Turns out it was for renting a vx520 credit card processing machine that I could buy online for $100 brand new. Now I am stuck paying for this for the next 2 years. Also, I am opening a third location in which these guys will never get. I also compared the rates they said would be cheaper than the previous processor that I switched over to and they are not cheaper. I actually would be saving about $720 per year more with my old processor. Now the guy that lied to me and scammed through lies (Jeff Sego) will not answer my phone calls. Once my contract is up, I will never do business with this company again. I guess that’s how some us learn. The hard way.
This post will help: Find and Eliminate Hidden Costs From Your Monthly Bill
-Phillip