Why choose Treezor to offer virtual card issuance?

One of the trends in digital payments, virtual cards are winning over more and more users: according to a study by Juniper Research, the number of virtual card transactions will exceed 121 billion worldwide by 2027, compared with 28 billion in 2022.

As a result, e-card users are increasingly concerned about the security of their online payments. For each transaction, it is possible to generate an e-card with its own identification number.

How do you set up a reliable, high-performance virtual card issuing program? Treezor explains the process in detail.

What is a virtual payment card?

The virtual card is a digital payment solution that is particularly well-suited to Internet transactions.

Generated and stored in the payment institution’s mobile application, it has the same characteristics as a physical card: 

• 16 digits representing a unique identification number;
• a 4-digit expiry date in MM/YY format;
• a 3-digit card verification code (CVC). 

This dematerialized card can be used to pay for purchases online or in stores, as long as it is compatible with smartphone e-wallets such as X-Pay.

It can be temporary, for a single use for example, or a permanent replacement for the physical bank card. In all cases, creation is instantaneous (instant issuing) and use is immediate. Depending on the issuer, various options are available: configuration of payment limits, restrictions or validity periods, customized design, multiple issues…

What are the advantages of an e-payment card?

Perceived as an effective payment instrument in the fight against fraud, the e-card also offers its holder a seamless, customized purchasing experience.

Transaction security

According to the Banque de France’s annual report, fraud involving means of payment amounts to a loss of 1.19 billion euros. Internet payments figure prominently among these sensitive channels.

Virtual cards reduce the risk of fraud. When it is intended for a single use, it becomes inoperative once the transaction has been carried out. Intercepting card numbers then loses all its usefulness.

Other interesting features include the allocation of a defined, capped amount, and the security of transactions via strong authentication. This is a two-factor authentication (2 FA) that reinforces the protection of remote transactions.

Last but not least, the e-card has one notable difference compared to a physical card: it is not exposed to the risk of loss, being stored in the holder’s mobile application. From there, it can be blocked if hacking is suspected.

Controlling expenditure

For companies, issuing e-cards simplifies the monitoring of their employees’ business expenses. Employers can allocate a precise budget to their employees, and set up the e-card so as not to exceed this ceiling.

It can also determine the categories of: 

• transactions accepted (payments or withdrawals);
• retailers involved;
• or authorized countries.

Non-compliant transactions are systematically blocked. In addition to saving administrative time with a digital, centralized expense management solution, the virtual card optimizes the cost of an issue program.

Smooth, efficient customer experience 

The e-card simplifies everyday life for its users. The latter can instantly create a virtual card for online purchases, or take out a subscription with monthly direct debits.

They can also register their digitized cards in their X-Pay wallets to facilitate payment on mobile applications or in stores using contactless technology. Payments are then secured by biometric authentication.

In the workplace, employees no longer need to advance their business expenses. For each mission or trip, they have a means of payment to cover their expenses. This practice facilitates the production of expense reports, as all debits are centralized on the virtual card statement.

How do I issue a virtual card with Treezor? 

Treezor, Europe’s leading provider of Banking-as-a-Service solutions, can manage your card program, whatever your sector of activity, to develop your payment, loyalty or financial services offer.

Card program creation

Thanks to its status as an Electronic Money Institution (EMI), Treezor is authorized to issue physical or virtual payment cards in 25 countries, including France, Germany, Italy and Spain.

Once the outline of your project has been clearly defined, Treezor will guide you through the various regulatory and technical stages: 

• legal declaration to the regulator and the card acceptance network (scheme) of your choice;
• integration of the application programming interface (API) with your operating system;
• technical validation phase through testing;
• activation of the card program and availability to your customer.

They can then configure the rules for using payment cards according to their activity.

E-payment card use cases

While virtual cards are particularly well-suited to Internet purchases, they also have other interesting uses: 

• in the mobility or travel sector, to determine an envelope dedicated to domestic or international travel;
• to develop a gift card or loyalty card program;
• to manage employees’ business expenses on a one-card, one-transaction basis;
• for companies concerned about their environmental impact and wishing to promote 100% digital solutions.

Digital card success stories: Lydia and Qonto

Treezor has supported a number of well-known fintechs, such as Lydia, an application initially specializing in payments between individuals. It wanted to offer its customers X-Pay compatible cards.

The collaboration with Treezor has enabled Lydia to develop its range of payment accounts, IBANs and virtual cards.

To launch its solution for businesses, Qonto used Treezor’s Electronic Money Establishment (EMI) license. In particular, the company deployed its service for issuing physical and virtual Business payment cards.

Quels sont les atouts d’un partenariat avec Treezor pour votre entreprise ?

En nouant un partenariat avec Treezor, vous décidez de vous inscrire dans le parcours de nombreuses autres licornes telles que Qonto ou Swile. Vous optez pour un acteur expérimenté et une offre innovante et ambitieuse.

Treezor : un émetteur expert

Outre son agrément d’EME auprès de l’ACPR, Treezor est un membre principal des réseaux internationaux d’acceptation, Visa et Mastercard. 

Son expertise vous permet aussi d’accélérer votre time-to-market et d’optimiser le coût de votre programme carte.

De plus, vous bénéficiez d’une prestation de BIN Sponsorship avec l’attribution des numéros ICA (Interbank Card Association) et d’un code BIN (Bank Identification Number).

Une nouvelle génération de Card Management System (CMS)

Treezor met à votre disposition une toute nouvelle génération de Card Management System (CMS) qui intègre le Multi-criteria Dynamic card (MDC ).

La fonctionnalité MDC permet à vos clients une hyper personnalisation de leurs programmes cartes en configurant des règles sophistiquées pour leur cartes de paiement et selon leurs politiques : limites et plafonds, différents types de restrictions (marchands, géolocalisation..), activation et blocage de la carte..

De votre côté, vous gardez un contrôle complet sur le moyen de paiement que vous distribuez et vos efforts de développement restent limités.

Vous profitez également d’autres fonctionnalités comme : 

• la personnalisation graphique de vos cartes (matière, design…) ;
• le rebond d’autorisation, vous intervenez en temps réel dans le processus d’autorisation pour valider ou refuser une transaction. 

Compatibilité X-Pay

Autre tendance des paiements, les applications mobiles X-Pay permettent de payer sans contact en magasin. Grâce à sa technologie de tokenisation des schemes, la solution d’émission de cartes virtuelles de Treezor est compatible avec les différents portefeuilles électroniques, dont Google Pay et Apple Pay. Elle répond notamment aux exigences de certification de l’application mobile d’Apple.  L’e-carte est définitivement un moyen de paiement à suivre dans une économie qui se digitalise chaque jour davantage.