Initially, the term “co-branded cards” was used for cards that can be served simultaneously in two payment systems, for example, in VISA or MasterCard, or related to two different products of the same payment system, for example, Cirrus or Maestro for MasterCard.
In this case, the division in service occurs by the type of terminal or by the type of operation performed. For example, the same card can be served at an ATM as a Cirrus product and at a POS terminal as a Maestro. In this case, there is a certain flexibility in the authorization of such cards, which allows the acquirer to direct transactions to one of the available payment systems. Currently, the term “co-branded cards” is most often used for bank cards issued jointly with a non-bank commercial organization (airlines, large retail chains, tourist networks, etc.). In this case, the issuing bank and the non-banking organization benefit each other by increasing the number of loyal customers and spreading the card usage environment.
