Issuer

Also called issuing bank, card issuer

The player's bank, which issued the card, approves or declines each payment, receives interchange and raises chargebacks on the cardholder's behalf.

The issuer is the player’s bank, at the opposite end of the payment from the acquirer. When a player buys a gem pack, the issuer decides whether to approve it and collects interchange from the acquirer. The EU caps that at 0.2% for consumer debit and 0.3% for consumer credit cards issued and used in the EEA (Regulation 2015/751).

The issuer also controls two things a studio feels directly. In the EEA it can demand strong customer authentication even when your PSP asks for an exemption. Exemptions under the SCA technical standards are requested by the PSP, and the issuer may still insist on the check. It also raises chargebacks when a cardholder disputes a charge. Mastercard adds an issuer recovery assessment of $5 per chargeback over 300 for merchants in their fourth month or later of its excessive-chargeback program (Stripe).

A high decline rate and a stream of disputes both start with the issuer. See chargebacks and fraud.