Introduction

Issuer tokens, network tokens, EMV tokens - whatever you call them - continue to be a hot topic for merchants, payment service providers, issuing banks, processors, and the networks themselves. This “sleight of hand” substitution of a payment account number with an indistinguishable alternative carries with it a robust set of capabilities that have promised to reduce the value of breached payment account information, lower the cost of card replacement, and enable unique account numbers for the expanding universe of payment-enabled devices.

In this episode, Chris Uriarte and Russ Jones discuss how tokens are implemented in the “card present” and “card not present” environments and how EMV tokens are becoming normalized in interchange tables, scheme fees, and provider services. As tokens move squarely into mainstream card processing, this conversation highlights important distinctions in network and provider implementations, fees, and regulations that should be on everyone’s radar.