DES MOINES, Iowa—With two key EMV roadblocks out of the way, CUs should begin their debit card EMV migration planning process, advises Brandon Kuehl in a new white paper from The Members Group.
The senior product manager stated that the two largest factors that have placed debit cards behind their credit counterparts in the U.S. EMV race—the complexity of the U.S. debit system and regulatory challenges specific to the Durbin Amendment—are now mostly resolved.
But in the white paper, “America’s Next Step in EMV: Debit Cards,” Kuehl adds that too many roadblocks to issuer revenue exist to begin issuing debit EMV cards immediately.
“Regional PIN networks, PIN processors and most merchants are not yet equipped to accept the U.S. common debit AID [application identifier] transactions,” writes Kuehl. “Therefore, any transactions made with U.S. debit EMV cards today will not likely route to an issuer’s PIN network partner. Instead, they will travel on the global AID rails (i.e. directly to MasterCard or Visa). Any cost savings or revenue the issuer typically enjoys with its PIN network partner would not be realized.”
Kuehl advised credit unions to build a team, educate managers and staff, and talk with vendors to determine what that migration process will look like.
To help its clients prepare, TMG is developing a streamlined program similar to its EMV for credit process. To date, the streamlined credit program has helped more than 80% of TMG clients ready their credit portfolios for the EMV standard. The white paper can be found in The vault, within CUToday.info.
The paper can also be found at: themembersgroup.com/debit_emv.