Numberless Credit Cards: A New Era of Secure Payments

The topic of numberless credit cards has come up several times in discussions, particularly regarding their impact on merchants and PCI compliance. I have been asked how these cards affect merchants and whether they reduce PCI scope. Given the increasing adoption of this technology, it’s essential to explore its implications.

A quick search on the Internet for organisations offering numberless credit and debit cards highlights several major banks and financial institutions worldwide that have adopted this innovation to enhance security and reduce fraud.

Notable implementations include:

• Santander Mexico: Launched the first numberless credit card in Mexico in 2020, displaying only the cardholder's name and expiration date. Card details are securely stored within the bank's mobile app, accessible through biometric authentication. (Santander)
• AMP Bank (Australia): In partnership with Mastercard, AMP Bank introduced Australia's first numberless debit card in February 2025. These cards lack visible numbers, enhancing security against fraud and scams. Card information is accessible through the AMP mobile app, utilizing biometric authentication for added protection. (PaymentsJournal)
• Chase UK: Since 2021, Chase's UK division has offered numberless debit cards, providing enhanced security by removing sensitive information from the physical card. (The Guardian)
• SadaPay (Pakistan): Partnered with Mastercard to issue numberless and contactless-enabled cards in Pakistan and the broader Middle East and Africa region. Card details are stored securely within the SadaPay app, accessible through biometric authentication.
• Honest Financial Technologies (Indonesia): Launched the Honest credit card in April 2023, a numberless card aimed at enhancing transaction security. Users can access their card information through the Honest app using biometric authentication. (Wikipedia)
• Curve (Europe): The fintech company Curve introduced numberless cards in Europe in 2020, focusing on security and a sleek design. (Wikipedia)
• Apple Card (USA): Launched in 2019, Apple's credit card, issued in partnership with Goldman Sachs, features a minimalist design without visible card numbers. All card information is accessible through the Apple Wallet app, enhancing security and user privacy.

These initiatives reflect a growing trend among financial institutions to enhance payment security and user privacy by adopting numberless card designs.

Now, let’s delve into the details of what numberless cards are and how they work.

What Are Numberless Credit Cards?

Numberless credit cards are physical or digital payment cards that do not display the traditional card number, CVV (Card Verification Value), or expiration date on the card itself. Instead, these details are stored securely within the issuer’s banking app, allowing cardholders to retrieve them when needed.

This innovation enhances security, prevents card skimming, and reduces fraud, making them an attractive alternative to traditional credit and debit cards.

Digital-First Experience

The shift toward a digital-first experience in payments is redefining how consumers interact with credit and debit cards. Numberless cards are at the forefront of this transformation, designed primarily for mobile-first usage with a strong emphasis on security and seamless digital transactions. Instead of relying on physical cards with printed details, users access their payment information securely through mobile banking apps, ensuring better fraud protection and enhanced user privacy.

This approach integrates tokenisation, biometric authentication, and dynamic security features, making payments not only safer but also more convenient. With numberless cards, customers can quickly retrieve card details, authenticate transactions with biometrics, and make secure payments via mobile wallets like Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay.

By eliminating visible card details and leveraging digital banking infrastructure, a digital-first experience ensures that consumers have full control over their payment security, reducing the risks associated with traditional card fraud, skimming, or theft. This evolution is a step toward the future of frictionless, highly secure digital payments.

Here's a quick overview of a customer experiance:

1. Customer initiates a transaction using a numberless card via mobile wallet, contactless NFC, or by retrieving details from a banking app.
2. Tokenisation service replaces PAN with a token before it reaches the merchant.
3. Merchant processes the payment without handling raw cardholder data.
4. Issuer authenticates the transaction via biometric authentication or dynamic CVV.
5. Transaction is approved or declined based on security checks and fraud prevention mechanisms.

How the Ecosystem Works

The numberless card ecosystem operates as a secure, interconnected framework designed to protect consumer transactions while ensuring convenience and seamless digital payments. By eliminating visible card details, this system reduces fraud risks and enhances user privacy. Each stakeholder plays a critical role in maintaining the security and efficiency of numberless payments, from issuing banks and fintech providers to merchants and payment networks. The process relies on advanced technologies such as tokenisation and biometric authentication, which add extra layers of protection against unauthorised access and data breaches.

The numberless card ecosystem consists of several key stakeholders working together to ensure secure transactions:

• Card Issuers (Banks & Fintechs): Provide numberless cards and maintain customer account information in digital banking apps.
• Payment Networks (Visa, Mastercard, etc.): Process transactions and support tokenisation for enhanced security.
• Merchants: Accept payments via NFC/contactless payments or online transactions, often through tokenised payment flows.
• Consumers: Use numberless cards via digital wallets or retrieve card details through banking apps.
• Tokenisation Services: Replace the actual card number (PAN) with a unique token for each transaction.
• Biometric Authentication Systems: Authenticate users via fingerprint or facial recognition before transactions are processed.

So whats the impact on PCI DSS - Am I Out-of_Scope?

For many businesses, PCI DSS is seen as a burden, an intricate web of security requirements that demand constant effort, investment, and vigilance. The compliance process, which requires merchants to secure cardholder data, undergo regular assessments, and manage complex reporting obligations, can feel like a daunting task. But could numberless cards offer a way to ease this burden? With no printed card numbers, expiry dates, or CVVs visible, these innovative cards reduce the risk of data breaches and unauthorised access. But do they truly minimize PCI-DSS obligations? Let’s explore how numberless cards impact merchants, consumers, and financial institutions and whether they shift the compliance landscape for the payments industry.

For Merchants:

For merchants, numberless cards present both opportunities and challenges in the realm of PCI DSS compliance. On the positive side, they reduce the risk of data breaches since there are no printed card details that can be stolen, minimising exposure to sensitive payment information. Transactions become more secure as authentication occurs through a user’s banking app, reducing reliance on static card credentials.

However, this shift also introduces new complexities. Merchants accepting manual card entries may face friction, as customers must retrieve their card details from an app, potentially leading to higher abandonment rates or checkout delays. Additionally, while numberless cards limit direct merchant access to PANs, PCI DSS scope is determined by how payments are processed, meaning merchants still need to ensure compliance in areas such as encryption, tokenisation, and secure payment processing. Ultimately, while numberless cards can reduce certain compliance burdens, they are not a complete exemption from PCI DSS requirements.

? Reduced Risk of Data Breaches – No printed card details to be stolen.

? More Secure Transactions – Authentication occurs via the user’s banking app.

? Dependency on Digital Infrastructure – Customers must retrieve card details from an app for manual entry.

PCI DSS Scope Considerations: Numberless cards do not automatically remove a merchant from PCI DSS scope. While they reduce exposure to visible cardholder data, PCI DSS applies based on how transactions are processed. If a merchant handles payments via tokenised NFC transactions or uses a third-party hosted payment page, they may significantly reduce their PCI burden. However, if a merchant accepts manually entered card details (e.g., through a virtual terminal or online checkout form), they remain in PCI scope and must ensure proper encryption, secure data transmission, and compliance with applicable requirements.

For Financial Institutions & Payment Networks:

For financial institutions and payment networks, numberless cards align with the industry’s broader shift toward digital-first payments, offering enhanced security and fraud reduction benefits. By eliminating printed card details, these cards significantly reduce the risk of cloning, skimming, and data breaches, which in turn lowers fraud-related costs for banks and networks. Additionally, they encourage the adoption of tokenised transactions and mobile wallets, reinforcing a secure and seamless digital payment ecosystem.

However, this innovation also presents new challenges, particularly in customer education and support. Banks must ensure that consumers understand how to retrieve and use their card details when needed, especially for transactions that require manual entry. Customer support teams may face an increased volume of queries related to accessing and managing numberless cards, requiring new guidance and potentially additional investment in digital banking solutions. While numberless cards provide strong security and fraud prevention advantages, financial institutions must balance these benefits with the need for a smooth customer experience.

? Supports the Shift to Digital Payments – Enhances security.

? Lowers Costs Associated with Fraud – Fewer cases of card cloning and skimming.

? Customer Support Challenges – Banks must educate customers on numberless card usage.

PCI DSS Scope Considerations: Financial institutions and payment networks remain subject to PCI DSS, as they process, store, and transmit cardholder data. While numberless cards reduce visible exposure, they do not eliminate the need for backend security controls. Banks must ensure robust tokenisation, encryption, and secure authentication mechanisms to maintain compliance. Additionally, any online portals or apps where customers access their card details must be secured under PCI DSS guidelines to prevent unauthorised access to sensitive data.

So are Numberless Credit Cards in Scope for PCI DSS?

The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) applies to entities that store, process, or transmit cardholder data (CHD).

While numberless cards reduce the visibility of card data, PCI scope is determined by how transactions are processed. Even though the physical card does not display details, the underlying PAN still exists digitally, meaning entities that interact with it in any form must adhere to PCI DSS requirements.

How Numberless Cards Reduce PCI DSS Scope

• Tokenisation: Keeps PAN out of merchant systems, reducing PCI scope.
• Hosted Payment Pages: If a merchant relies on a third-party processor with a secure payment page, they remain largely out of PCI DSS scope.
• NFC & Contactless Payments: Merchants processing only tokenised NFC transactions (e.g., via mobile wallets) have a reduced PCI scope, as they do not handle raw card data.

While numberless cards enhance security and reduce risk exposure, full PCI DSS compliance still depends on the payment flow and data handling practices of merchants, financial institutions, and service providers.

Conclusion: Are Numberless Cards the Future?

Numberless credit cards enhance security and fraud prevention while preserving the benefits of traditional credit card transactions. They align with broader trends like biometric authentication and tokenisation.

Banks and payment brands like Mastercard and Visa are driving the adoption of numberless cards as part of their broader strategy to enhance security, reduce fraud, and accelerate the shift toward digital-first payments. By eliminating visible card details, they significantly reduce risks associated with theft, skimming, and data breaches, ultimately lowering fraud-related costs for financial institutions. Additionally, numberless cards seamlessly integrate with mobile wallets and tokenised transactions, reinforcing the move away from traditional plastic cards and toward a more secure, digital ecosystem.

While this innovation presents challenges in consumer education and potential usability issues, the long-term benefits, such as reduced PCI DSS scope for merchants using tokenised payments, enhanced fraud prevention, and greater consumer trust, align with the industry's vision of a safer, more efficient payment landscape. As digital transactions continue to dominate, Mastercard, Visa, and banks see numberless cards as a key step in modernising payments while maintaining regulatory and security compliance.

For consumers, numberless cards offer enhanced security and convenience but also introduce potential usability challenges. The primary benefit is greater protection against theft and fraud, without printed card details, lost or stolen cards become far less valuable to criminals. This added layer of security aligns with the growing shift toward digital wallets and mobile-first transactions, creating a seamless payment experience.

However, the reliance on smartphone access can be a drawback, especially for users who need to manually enter their card details for online purchases or services that do not support tokenised payments. In cases where a consumer’s phone is lost, out of battery, or has connectivity issues, retrieving card details can become an obstacle. While numberless cards streamline digital transactions and improve security, they require consumers to adapt to a new way of managing their payment credentials.

Their success depends on:

• User adoption – Educating consumers about numberless card benefits.
• Merchant acceptance – Ensuring seamless integration with existing payment infrastructure.
• Regulatory support – Enforcing security measures without increasing friction.

Ultimately, numberless cards are an evolution rather than a replacement. As Visa and Mastercard refine their offerings, expect broader global adoption in the next 3-5 years.

I'm curious, do you find this innovation useful? Have they improved your payment experience, or do you find them inconvenient when you need to manually enter your card details? Has it made you feel more secure, or have you run into challenges retrieving your card information when needed? And if you haven’t switched yet, would you consider using one? Let me know your thoughts as I'd love to hear how this shift is impacting real-world users!

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Disclaimer:

The views and opinions expressed in this LinkedIn article are solely my own and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or policies of my current or any previous employer, organisation, or any other entity I may be associated with.