Cat-09 · Card Economics · 7 Tools

Card Economics Hub

Master interchange and scheme fees across the full card stack

Seven browser-based tools covering the full card payment economics stack — from merchant interchange cost analysis and MCC risk profiling to scheme fee modeling for acquirers, issuer portfolio P&L, and card programme unit economics. Visa · Mastercard · 2025–2026 rates embedded. Client-side. Zero PII.

Client-Side Zero PII Visa · Mastercard Export
All inputs are processed locally in your browser. No data is transmitted. All rate schedules are embedded client-side — 2025–2026 Visa and Mastercard US interchange schedules.
Tool Library

7 Card Economics Tools

Follow the 5-stage card economics journey below, or jump directly to the tool you need. All tools run in your browser — no account, no data transmission.

1
Stage 1
Merchant Cost Analysis
2
Stage 2
Merchant Optimization
3
Stage 3
Acquirer Scheme Fees
4
Stage 4
Issuer Economics
5
Stage 5
Programme Economics
Group 1 · Merchant & Acquirer Tools
T38 ⚓ Anchor
ModelExport

ClearCost Card & A2A Payment Cost Analyzer

Compare Flat-Rate vs. Interchange-Plus vs. Cash Discount with animated donut charts. Dissects MDR at line-item level — interchange, assessment, processor markup — with downgrade scenarios, Durbin context, and A2A comparison.

Visa · Mastercard A2A Comparison 2025–2026 Rates
Open Tool
T44
ReferenceDecoder

MCC Code Explorer & Risk Profiler

Searchable reference for 340+ Merchant Category Codes. Filter by risk tier, network flags, NAICS group. Full detail drawer: Visa/Mastercard rules, chargeback thresholds, Durbin eligibility.

ISO 18245 340+ MCCs Chargeback Thresholds
Open Tool
T52
ModelExport

Interchange Fee Optimizer

Model U.S. interchange fees across Visa, Mastercard, Amex, and Discover. Compare flat-rate vs. interchange-plus vs. tiered pricing. Calculate Level 2/3 savings, PIN debit routing, and A2A migration ROI.

Level 2/3 PIN Debit A2A ROI
Open Tool
T85
ModelExport

Merchant Card Economics Optimizer

Four-stage merchant card cost analysis — blended interchange, MCC risk mapping, routing/surcharging savings, VDCAP April 2026 authentication compliance audit, and board-ready CFO optimization memo.

VDCAP 2026 MCC Mapping CFO Memo
Open Tool
T415
ModelExport

Scheme Fee Analyzer

Break down Visa and Mastercard scheme fees for acquirers — assessment, FANF (fixed acquirer network fee by volume tier), cross-border assessments, and NABU/APS — with SVG charts and industry benchmarks.

FANF Cross-Border Assessment Fees
Open Tool
Group 2 · Issuer & Programme Economics
T416
ModelExport

Issuer Card Portfolio P&L Model

Model the full economics of a card portfolio: NII, interchange revenue, annual fees, rewards liability, fraud loss, credit losses, and servicing cost → per-account unit economics and portfolio ROA.

NII Interchange Rewards Cost ROA
Open Tool
T417
ModelExport

Card Programme Unit Economics Builder

Model co-brand, private label, fintech/BIN-sponsor, and prepaid card programme economics — interchange split, rewards liability, marketing contribution, breakeven spend per card, and sensitivity analysis.

Co-Brand Prepaid BIN-Sponsor
Open Tool

v1.0 · May 2026 · 7 Tools · Cat-09 · Card Economics

Audience

Who Uses These Tools

Merchant Finance Teams

Cost baseline, interchange optimization, CFO memo generation. Use T38 to dissect your MDR line-by-line, T44 to verify MCC classification and risk flags, T52 for Level 2/3 savings analysis, and T85 for a board-ready CFO optimization memo.

Acquirers & Processors

Scheme fee modeling, FANF tier analysis, cross-border cost. Use T415 to break down your Visa and Mastercard scheme fee load — FANF tiers, assessments, NABU/APS — often an overlooked 10–18 bps of volume.

Card Issuers

Portfolio P&L, unit economics, scenario comparison. Use T416 to model the full economics of your card portfolio — NII, interchange, rewards liability, credit losses — through to per-account unit economics and ROA.

Card Programme Managers

Co-brand/prepaid breakeven analysis, rewards liability modeling. Use T417 to model programme economics across co-brand, private label, BIN-sponsor, and prepaid structures with breakeven spend per card and sensitivity analysis.

Regulatory Coverage

Key Regulatory Frameworks

Tools in this hub are mapped to obligations and rate schedules under the following frameworks. Verify current applicability with qualified legal counsel.

💳 Visa VDCAP (Apr 2026)

Visa Digital Commerce Authentication Programme rules effective April 2026. T85 includes a VDCAP authentication compliance audit stage with actionable remediation steps.

🇺🇸 Durbin / Reg II

Durbin Amendment (Reg II) debit interchange caps and routing requirements. T38, T52, and T44 surface Durbin eligibility and PIN debit routing opportunities for qualifying merchants.

🇪🇺 EU IFR

EU Interchange Fee Regulation — 0.2% consumer debit cap, 0.3% consumer credit cap. T52 and T416 include EU IFR rate logic for cross-border scenario modeling.

💳 Mastercard 2025–2026

Mastercard US Interchange Rate Schedules effective 2025–2026. Embedded in T38, T52, T85, and T415 for real-rate modeling across all Mastercard product tiers.

💳 Visa 2025–2026

Visa US Interchange Reimbursement Fee schedules effective 2025–2026. Embedded in T38, T52, T85, and T415 covering all Visa product categories including CPS, EIRF, and standard rates.

Quick Start

Get Started in 3 Steps

  1. 1

    Understand your merchant costs

    Start with T38 — ClearCost or T52 — Interchange Fee Optimizer to baseline your current card acceptance cost. Use T44 — MCC Code Explorer to check MCC classification and risk flags that affect your interchange category.

  2. 2

    Optimize and model scheme fees

    Run T85 — Merchant Card Economics Optimizer for a full merchant optimization analysis including VDCAP 2026 compliance. Use T415 — Scheme Fee Analyzer to model your acquirer's scheme fee load — often an overlooked 10–18 bps of volume.

  3. 3

    Model issuer and programme economics

    Use T416 — Issuer Card Portfolio P&L Model to build a portfolio P&L view through to per-account unit economics and ROA. Use T417 — Card Programme Unit Economics Builder to model a card programme from the ground up with breakeven analysis and sensitivity scenarios.

Related Hubs

Explore Adjacent Suites

MCP Integration

Agentic Access via MCP

All 7 tools expose structured outputs compatible with the AINumbers MCP manifest. Rate schedules are embedded — no external API calls required.

Tool IDTool NameMCP Definition Name
T38ClearCost Card & A2A Payment Cost Analyzeranalyze_card_a2a_payment_cost
T44MCC Code Explorer & Risk Profilerexplore_mcc_code_risk_profile
T52Interchange Fee Optimizeroptimize_interchange_fees
T85Merchant Card Economics Optimizerrun_merchant_card_economics_optimizer
T415Scheme Fee Analyzeranalyze_scheme_fees
T416Issuer Card Portfolio P&L Modelmodel_issuer_card_portfolio_pl
T417Card Programme Unit Economics Builderbuild_card_programme_unit_economics