BANKING & PAYMENTS · CARD & MERCHANT
Card Issuing Programme
Framework
A card programme is an arrangement between an issuer, a processor, a scheme, and a sponsor — and the economics are set by which of those roles you hold. We structure the programme and build it out: BIN sponsorship or principal membership, processor and scheme certification, cardholder onboarding, dispute and chargeback handling, and settlement and scheme reporting.
THE SPECIFICATION
Architecture & Audience
A card programme puts a brand on an instrument that runs on someone else’s network under someone else’s rules. Either a sponsor holds the scheme membership and the programme runs beneath it, or the institution becomes a principal member itself — a far heavier undertaking. Either way the scheme rules bind, and the interchange economics are what they are rather than what the model assumed.
EMIs and banks adding a card to an account product; corporates issuing expense or payout cards; and brands where the card is central to the proposition rather than an accessory.
What We Deliver
A complete architecture, designed, launched, and managed
We select the card scheme and design the programme around the interchange economics, acceptance network, and cardholder proposition the business requires. Scheme selection is driven by the programme’s unit economics, not by which scheme will approve the application fastest.
We negotiate the BIN sponsorship arrangement or manage the principal membership application that gives the programme its scheme standing. Sponsorship terms — fee structure, liability allocation, and exit provisions — are negotiated before the relationship is signed.
We manage the BIN allocation process, BIN table configuration, and the ongoing BIN management that keeps the programme’s card production and authorisation infrastructure aligned with the scheme’s technical requirements.
We select and implement the card processor that handles authorisation, clearing, and settlement for the programme. Processor selection is benchmarked against processing cost, scheme certification status, and the technical integration timeline.
We model the interchange economics of the programme before it launches: inbound interchange rates by merchant category and card type, programme fees, and the processor margin that determines whether the programme’s unit economics are viable at the planned scale.
We source and implement the card production and fulfilment infrastructure — bureau selection, personalisation standards, and delivery logistics — that puts cards in cardholders’ hands on the timeline the programme requires.
We design and test the authorisation, clearing, and settlement flows that connect the programme’s processor, sponsor bank, and scheme. End-to-end testing is completed before go-live, not after the first transactions reveal gaps in the implementation.
We build the dispute and chargeback handling function: scheme-compliant reason code responses, evidence standards, representment procedures, and the management reporting that tracks chargeback rates before they trigger scheme fines or programme suspension.
We manage the scheme compliance obligations — registration, audit, and reporting requirements — that apply to the programme throughout its life. Compliance is managed as a function, not addressed reactively when the scheme raises a deficiency.
What We Deliver
A complete architecture, designed, launched, and managed
We select the card scheme and design the programme around the interchange economics, acceptance network, and cardholder proposition the business requires. Scheme selection is driven by the programme’s unit economics, not by which scheme will approve the application fastest.
We negotiate the BIN sponsorship arrangement or manage the principal membership application that gives the programme its scheme standing. Sponsorship terms — fee structure, liability allocation, and exit provisions — are negotiated before the relationship is signed.
We manage the BIN allocation process, BIN table configuration, and the ongoing BIN management that keeps the programme’s card production and authorisation infrastructure aligned with the scheme’s technical requirements.
We select and implement the card processor that handles authorisation, clearing, and settlement for the programme. Processor selection is benchmarked against processing cost, scheme certification status, and the technical integration timeline.
We model the interchange economics of the programme before it launches: inbound interchange rates by merchant category and card type, programme fees, and the processor margin that determines whether the programme’s unit economics are viable at the planned scale.
We source and implement the card production and fulfilment infrastructure — bureau selection, personalisation standards, and delivery logistics — that puts cards in cardholders’ hands on the timeline the programme requires.
We design and test the authorisation, clearing, and settlement flows that connect the programme’s processor, sponsor bank, and scheme. End-to-end testing is completed before go-live, not after the first transactions reveal gaps in the implementation.
We build the dispute and chargeback handling function: scheme-compliant reason code responses, evidence standards, representment procedures, and the management reporting that tracks chargeback rates before they trigger scheme fines or programme suspension.
We manage the scheme compliance obligations — registration, audit, and reporting requirements — that apply to the programme throughout its life. Compliance is managed as a function, not addressed reactively when the scheme raises a deficiency.
Infrastructure Selection
X-CHASE holds no commercial interest in any provider, assessing them strictly on live performance, structural fit, and renewal terms. Providers are named exclusively under formal engagement, never on a public website.