Card platform upgrade calendars are getting shorter. The next major deadline may arrive before issuers finish planning for the last one.
Card issuers face pressure from several directions. Fraud keeps changing, customers expect faster digital services and AI is creating new ways to manage accounts. Older platforms can make each improvement harder to deliver. Issuers must decide which tools to add first, how quickly to upgrade and where each investment can produce the greatest return.
The “Issuer Investment Playbook,” a PYMNTS Intelligence report in collaboration with Visa DPS, draws on a survey of 500 payment leaders at U.S. bank and nonbank card issuers. It examines the capabilities they’re building now, what they plan to add over the next 12 months and how priorities vary by customer base. The findings also compare current results with a prior survey of 451 executives.
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In “The Issuer Investment Playbook: Investing Forward, Building the Edge,” learn how:
- Leading issuers are moving beyond basic protection. Issuers with high customer lifetime value are more likely than those with lower value to be building advanced data analytics, instant card delivery to digital wallets and flexible card options. Issuers with lower customer lifetime value are still adding tools such as cards with changing security codes, card controls in mobile apps and updated chip technology.
- Different customers produce different investment plans. Issuers that serve affluent customers are concentrating on cards with changing security codes and tokenization. Mainstream issuers are putting more attention on scam detection and real-time transaction alerts. Issuers focused on customers with limited access to credit are investing in transaction alerts and connections to mobile wallets.
- AI has jobs across the cardholder relationship. Transaction categorization leads the list of AI capabilities issuers plan to add or expand. Customer service automation, marketing tools and personalized rewards also rank highly. These investments can help issuers understand spending, respond faster and give cardholders more useful experiences.
The data gives issuers a practical way to compare their plans with those of their peers. It also shows why the customers an issuer serves can provide a stronger guide than past portfolio results alone. A premium card program may need deeper personalization, while a mainstream portfolio may gain more from stronger scam alerts or simpler card controls.
For payment leaders, product teams, fraud executives and technology decision-makers, the report offers a clear view of where issuer investment is heading. Download now to see which capabilities are gaining ground and how issuers can build a more focused plan for growth.
About the Report
“The Issuer Investment Playbook: Investing Forward, Building the Edge,” a PYMNTS Intelligence report in collaboration with Visa DPS, examines where card issuers are directing their next wave of investment: platform upgrade timing, the capability roadmap for the next 12 months, AI priorities across risk and growth, and how investment priorities vary by the customer segment a portfolio serves. The analysis draws on a survey of 500 executives who fill head of payment roles at U.S.-based bank and nonbank card issuers, with year-over-year comparisons to a prior survey of 451 executives. The current survey was fielded from December 16, 2025, to January 14, 2026.
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