Card issuing has become a major component of the retail banking mix as financial institutions implement new channels to serve their current account and lending customers.

There are different challenges associated with different card products, whether credit, debit, charge or prepaid; and whether the customer base is consumer or corporate / business. One common theme is that issuers are operating in an increasingly competitive marketplace with relatively low barriers to entry and minimal switching costs for cardholders.

Key questions being asked for different product types include:

• Credit – how do I identify and retain my most profitable cardholders? How can I accelerate cardholder acquisition?
• Debit – when should I add contactless payment capability to my debit portfolio?
• Charge – how do I offer a consistent proposition across multiple regions to multi-national corporate clients? Where should I self-issue and where should I partner (and with whom)?
• Prepaid – what types of prepaid product have the most profit potential? How does this vary between customer segments and across different geographies?

At the same time, regulators around the world continue to apply downward pressure on interchange; this forces issuers to consider their business models and seek new sources of income.

Other questions include:

• How can I drive activation and usage of my cards?
• What processor should I use?
• What is the optimum approach to managing credit and fraud risk across my customer base?
• What are the implications for my business of the rise of mobile commerce?