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Galileo Financial Technologies LLC’s Digital First product ranks first among digital debit card issuers in Javelin Strategy & Research’s inaugural Digital Issuance Provider Scorecard. Sandy, Utah-based Galileo earned top billing for its flexibility, security, and scalability. Javelin ranked eight digital-issuance vendors’ products, using 25 criteria across features and functionality, technology, and customer support.
Galileo’s Digital First Product provides consumers both a digital and physical card. The digital card is issued first to allow consumers to begin using it immediately. The physical card has the same primary account number, card verification value, and expiration date as the digital card. As a result, cardholders setting up recurring payments with the digital card don’t have to input new information when their physical card arrives. The physical card comes in an activated state, allowing cardholders to use it after setting their PIN.
“One of Galileo’s key strengths is the flexibility it provides clients in choosing complementary services,” Elisa Tavilla, director of the debit payments practice for Javelin, says by email. “Galileo’s digital issuance solutions support a broad variety of card types, card brands, and digital wallets…and provides seamless card management capabilities, allowing issuers to freeze and unfreeze cards, cancel and reissue lost or stolen cards, and maintain the same account throughout the process.”
Another advantage of Galileo’s Digital First Product is that when a new card is issued because of loss, theft, or compromise, it remains linked to the original account, ensuring a smooth transition for the accountholder, according to Javelin. “Galileo prioritizes and enhances security with digital card management capabilities, including allowing cardholders to self-manage their digital card and set up alerts and transaction thresholds. Galileo supports card provisioning to numerous digital wallets, including Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, etc..” Tavilla adds.
Digital debit cards have become table stakes for issuers as more and more consumers prefer to use debit to pay for a purchase without a physical card, Javelin says. Some 52% of consumers use debit cards, and 54% of consumers use credit cards, in mobile wallets, according to Javelin. As a result, “issuers must prioritize seamless digital issuance to keep pace with evolving payment preferences and remain top-of-wallet,” Elisa Tavilla, director of the debit payments practice for Javelin, says in a statement.
In addition to Galileo claiming the top spot, Thales, a provider of digital identity and security solutions for financial services providers, and FIS (Fidelity National Information Services Inc.) ranked as overall leaders on the scorecard. Both companies stood out for their dynamic digital-issuance capabilities, including strong security, seamless integration, and broad functionality, according to Javelin.
The Thales D1 solution, which is a cloud-based platform that allows issuers to bring together virtual, digital, and physical card issuance in a single app-based solution, excels for its innovative, mobile-centric digital issuance capabilities, according to Javelin. “Thales’ solution supports an omnichannel card issuance approach, including the ability to instantly create and activate a digital replacement for a lost or stolen card, in-app reminders of forgotten PINs, and real-time tracking of postal deliveries, so customers know exactly when their new physical card will arrive, says Tavilla.
FIS’s digital issuance product stands out for its robust capabilities, said Javelin, including support for digital issuance and provisioning to various digital wallets and card brands. FIS provides several technology options, including in-house, cloud, and mobile software development kit (SDK), and Web-based service integration.
Half of issuers plan to expand their digital-issuance capabilities as the technology reduces friction in account setup and card replacement, Javelin says. Digital cards also help issuers retain transactions by preventing delays that could lead consumers to switch payment methods.
With digital issuance a must-have, issuers need to actively invest in the technology and seek out strong partners. “Success depends on finding the right partners—those that continuously innovate and offer flexible, secure, and scalable solutions backed by strong customer support,” Tavilla says. “Digital issuance is essential as consumers adopt new ways to use debit payments, including without a physical card. To keep up with consumer demand for digital-payment experiences, issuers must roll out new capabilities to stay top-of-wallet. It is critical that issuers support digital issuance to meet customer demand and remain competitive and relevant.”
