Card Network Fee Management & Interchange Optimization for Issuers and Acquirers

Visa and Mastercard continuously change their fees and compliance requirements. CardTraq gives issuers, acquirers, and BIN sponsors the analytics platform and capabilities they need.

We help you track every charge, identify potential cost out of 7-15%, and stay ahead of network updates, without the manual effort.

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A CRG Business
Overview

A two-minute tour of CardTraq

Our Approach

How CardTraq Helps You Reduce Visa & Mastercard Network Costs

CardTraq focuses on two core P&L drivers (interchange and network fees) and gives your team the tools to act on both. Whether you need to reduce avoidable costs, recover pass-through fees, or optimize your pricing model, our platforms make payment economics optimization and compliance structured, scalable, and measurable.

Strong increase in network fees
Process efficiency around network management
Understanding granular transaction economics
Interchange qualification
Challenges
~30% unit cost increase over the last 5 years; network fee optimization can make a difference between winners and losers in the market.
Significant complexity with consolidating and efficiently analyzing fees, particularly for large organizations; new fees being introduced regularly, often opt-out.
~50% of network costs are universal, i.e. not directly linked to a transaction, and need to be apportioned to facilitated business decisions.
Interchange misqualification remains a persistent source of margin erosion for acquirers, driven by configuration gaps and inconsistent transaction data quality.
Our Services
Network Fee Review Forecasting & Accruals Accounting Merchant Pricing Model Interchange Review Merchant Pass-through Review Network Compliance Tracking Pricing Efficacy Review Interchange Tracking Network Fee Tracking Portfolio Profitability Diagnostic Interchange Configuration Support
Product Service ★Quick win
Cost Allocation Service
Strong increase in network fees
~30% unit cost increase over the last 5 years; network fee optimization can make a difference between winners and losers in the market.
Our Services
Process efficiency around network management
Significant complexity with consolidating and efficiently analyzing fees, particularly for large organizations; new fees being introduced regularly, often opt-out.
Our Services
Understanding granular transaction economics
~50% of network costs are universal, i.e. not directly linked to a transaction, and need to be apportioned to facilitated business decisions.
Our Services
Interchange qualification
Interchange misqualification remains a persistent source of margin erosion for acquirers, driven by configuration gaps and inconsistent transaction data quality.
Our Services
Items in bold are universal quick wins

Our clients – including some of the world's leading payment card organizations – have identified potential network fee savings of 7–15%, reduced interchange costs by 5–10%, and improved cost recovery by up to 50%.

Explore Our Offerings

Four Modules.
Complete Card Network Cost Control.

01

Network Fee Tracking

Monitor every Visa and Mastercard network fee in one platform. Identify cost drivers, eliminate unnecessary charges, and forecast fee changes, saving clients millions annually.

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02

Interchange Tracking

Break down interchange fee drivers, quantify optimization opportunities, and improve P&L forecasting accuracy. Purpose-built for issuers and acquirers managing complex interchange structures.

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03

Compliance Tracking

Centralize Visa and Mastercard compliance updates and automate change monitoring. Keep your card programs aligned with network requirements, reducing risk and manual effort.

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04

Custom Consulting

Additionally, we offer tailored profitability engagements, leveraging our expert practitioners, through our consulting organization.

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Our Client Value

Trusted by Leading Global Payment Card Organizations

Railsr
DBS
PayPal
WEX
Stripe
Klarna
Curve
NIUM
UMB
NAB
Cross River

Before CardTraq, network fees were a black box. Now, we have a clear monthly view of every charge, and can challenge unexpected items with confidence. We've already saved seven figures and strengthened our merchant pricing.

COOMid-Sized Acquirer

CardTraq helped us uncover hidden fees and gave us the transparency we needed to streamline our cost structure. It's rare to find a tool this powerful that's also this easy for a bank to use.

Head of Product & OpsDigital-First Issuer

CardTraq turned fee optimization from a manual slog into a strategic advantage. We now track trends across multiple regions and products, spot anomalies early, and make more informed decisions.

CFOGlobal Issuer
Network Fees Explained

Get a grip on the growing challenge

Can you clearly explain what you are paying Visa and Mastercard in network (scheme) fees, and what is driving those costs? If not, you are not alone, and the opportunity is usually larger than expected once the drivers become visible.

Our free guide explains how Visa and Mastercard network (scheme) fees work, how they are assessed, who pays them, and why they continue to rise faster than payment volumes.

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Card Network Scheme Fees Explained — free guide
FAQs

Frequently asked questions

1Why are my Visa and Mastercard costs going up?
Visa and Mastercard regularly introduce new fees, adjust current fee levels, and expand optional and mandatory services. Because these changes are incremental, they often go unnoticed until the cumulative impact becomes significant. Network fees have been growing faster than underlying payment volumes, which means costs can rise even when transaction growth is flat.
2What is network fee tracking?
Network fee tracking is the process of monitoring, analyzing, and governing the fees charged by card networks like Visa and Mastercard. It goes beyond reviewing invoice totals by breaking costs down by fee type, driver, and program segment so teams can identify what changed, why, and whether it is controllable.
3What is the difference between network fee tracking and interchange tracking?
Network fee tracking focuses on the charges paid to card networks for infrastructure, programs, and services. Interchange tracking focuses on the fees that flow between issuers and acquirers on each transaction. Both affect payments profitability, but they are governed differently and require different analytical approaches.
4How can issuers and acquirers reduce card network costs?
The most common opportunities include eliminating optional network services that are no longer needed, correcting enrollment and governance gaps, improving cost allocation and pass-through frameworks, and identifying operational behaviors that trigger avoidable fees. Structured visibility is the starting point, because most savings are not visible until the underlying fee drivers are understood.
5What types of card programs are affected by network fees?
Network fees apply across all Visa and Mastercard branded card programs, including consumer credit, debit, prepaid, payroll, and commercial cards. They also apply across program models, whether the organization is an issuer, acquirer, BIN sponsor, ISO, or fintech.
6How often should card network fees be reviewed?
Network fees should be reviewed on an ongoing basis, not just when costs spike. A structured monthly review helps teams build pattern recognition and catch changes early, while deeper quarterly reviews can surface optimization opportunities tied to optional services, governance gaps, or evolving network programs.

Start Reducing Your Card Network Fees Today

Most issuers and acquirers have potential network fee savings of 7–15% to be uncovered. CardTraq gives you the visibility to find them. Book a personalized demo and we'll show you exactly where your overspend is hiding.

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