“Visa, Mastercard, and AMEX are pushing Network Tokens hard in key markets. If you want higher approval rates, it’s time to move.”

That’s what one card scheme told a payment platform during a recent strategy session. Network tokenization hasn’t always been top of mind, but as schemes shift their standards and push for adoption, priorities for platforms are quickly changing across regions. ‍

Why Payment Platforms Should Pay Attention Now

Network tokenization is no longer a nice-to-have; it’s becoming essential to staying competitive and delivering value to your customers. The benefits are clear:  

✅ Higher approval rates  
🔄 Automatic card updates  
🔐  Stronger fraud protection through transaction-level cryptograms  
📈  Fewer declined or expired transactions  
🤩  Improved user experience and conversion  

Once the value is clear, the next question is:

Should you build direct integrations with each scheme, or partner with a token provider?

The Three Models for Tokenization

‍Implications for Payment Platforms

For platforms considering direct integration with the schemes, here’s what you need to know:

• Scheme Approval Is Not Guaranteed

You must apply to each card scheme (Visa, Mastercard, Amex) for permission to integrate. Approval often depends on your transaction volume, use case, and regional footprint.

• Integration Fees and Evaluation Periods

Some schemes now charge integration or acceleration fees, especially if the projected build timeline is long. Fees vary based on complexity and resource requirements.

• Penalties for Not Tokenizing

Visa, Mastercard, and others have introduced new fees for non-tokenized card-not-present (CNP) transactions, typically ranging from 2.5 to 6.5 basis points, depending on the region and program.

• Ongoing Maintenance Burden

Once integrated, you’ll need to keep pace with regular scheme updates, certification milestones, evolving token formats and security requirements. This is a long-term engineering and compliance commitment.

• Token Lifecycle Management

Platforms must track token status, re-issuance, mapping to PANs, and routing—unless they delegate this to a third-party provider.

If you don’t have dedicated teams ready to own scheme compliance and API updates, direct integration may create more operational drag than value.

Why More Platforms Choose a Network Token Requestor

Building and maintaining scheme-by-scheme integrations is expensive and time-consuming. For many platforms, the smarter move is partnering with a Network Token Requestor like PCI Proxy, which offers:

• A single API for Visa, Mastercard, and Amex tokens

• Automatic updates for scheme requirements

• Token lifecycle visibility and analytics

• Support for routing across multiple acquirers and gateways

• Simplified PCI compliance

This frees up your product and engineering teams to focus on innovation.  

Final Thought: Strategic Optionality for Payment Platforms

If you're a payment platform, ask yourself:

"Is building and maintaining scheme-specific token infrastructure truly the best use of our roadmap?"

Unless you operate at massive scale and can commit long-term resources, partnering with a flexible, scheme-connected provider offers the speed, reliability, and future-readiness your platform needs.

We’re offering a free test experience with Network Tokens so you can explore the benefits firsthand. To learn more, visit our PCI Proxy Network Token Guide

‍