Asked why his independent sales organization, AmericaOne Merchant Services, is based in Sunnyvale, California, Co-founder and President/CEO David McMackin says, “I’m a California boy. What can I say?”

Other than that, there aren’t many benefits to being based in the nation’s most populous state. “It’s expensive here, and there aren’t any legal or tax benefits that I can think of. I might be able to make 20 percent more money somewhere else, but what it really comes down to for me is that California is home.”

Ask the same question of other ISO owners and you’re sure to hear any number of answers—though it’s probably safe to assume many share McMackin’s “home sweet home” mentality. For example, Sam Caine, president of Frisco, Texas-based Card Payment Services Inc., the boutique ISO he founded 1999, worked for several other firms, including Peachtree Bankcard, PMT Services, and NOVA Corp. (after the Atlanta-based processor acquired PMT Services in 1998).

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