Selecting the right issuer processor is one of the most consequential decisions for any ambitious payments program. The partner you choose directly shapes your ability to innovate, scale efficiently, and respond to evolving customer and market demands. The right platform not only enables rapid delivery of new products, but also helps ensure operational resilience, regulatory compliance, and seamless global expansion. Conversely, the wrong partner can lead to critical limitations, higher costs, and missed growth opportunities that are difficult to overcome once embedded in your core infrastructure.

This checklist provides a technical framework for evaluating an issuer processor, ensuring your partner can deliver the scale, agility, and control required for modern card programs. Use these criteria to help validate that your provider delivers without compromise.

Platform & Reliability

• Ensure Architectural Resilience: Confirm the platform offers strong uptime, backed by a multi-region failover strategy and proven performance handling.

• Verify Modern, API-First Design: Assess the platform’s ability to support rapid development and iteration through a cloud-native, API-first architecture with clear documentation.

Issuing Depth & Flexibility

• Confirm Unified Program Support: Ask whether a single integration supports multiple types of programs, such as consumer and commercial, and both credit and debit card types, reducing complexity.

• Verify Advanced Issuing Capabilities: Ensure native support for virtual cards, Just-in-Time (JIT) Funding, and digital wallet tokenization to power innovative use cases.

Risk & Controls

• Assess Granular Control: Confirm you can programmatically set dynamic, real-time spending controls at the individual transaction level to mitigate risk and enforce policy.

• Evaluate Integrated Security: Ask how the platform provides comprehensive program management for safety and security, including fraud monitoring and dispute management tools.

Data & Insights

• Confirm Real-Time Data Access: Verify access to raw transaction data via webhooks or event streams, enabling immediate visibility and custom analytics.

• Evaluate Data Utility: Ensure the platform delivers actionable insights that can be used to optimize authorization rates, reduce fraud, and inform product decisions.

Global Readiness

• Verify Global Footprint: Confirm the provider holds active certifications in your target markets.

• Assess Cross-Border Expertise: Ensure the platform can manage multi-currency processing and settlement while navigating local scheme rules and compliance requirements.

Partnership & Expertise

• Evaluate Implementation Support: Ask about the provider’s experience with complex migrations and their process for guiding you through bank partnerships and compliance.

• Confirm Strategic Guidance: Ensure your partner provides ongoing expertise to help you innovate, de-risk new launches, and accelerate time to value.

Ready to discuss how Marqeta’s platform meets these technical requirements? Contact Marqeta to learn more.