Card Network

The connective tissue between banks that routes and authorizes your payment.

A card network is like the interstate system for your money. When you swipe or click "buy," the card network (Visa, Mastercard, Amex, or Discover) carries your transaction between the merchant’s bank and your issuing bank. It’s not holding your money or approving anything itself. Instead, it enforces the rules, ensures the message gets to the right place, and helps banks trust each other enough to say “yes” or “no” in seconds. Every time you pay with a card, the network takes a tiny toll for providing the rails that make fast, reliable commerce possible.