Card branding programs

Airwallex offers card branding programs that control how your brand appears on physical cards, virtual cards, digital wallets, and cardholder notifications. Physical card options include two approaches — lightweight and full white-label — each with different levels of customization, go-live timelines, and upfront commitment. Both programs support commercial and consumer issuance and are available in all regions where Airwallex's physical card issuance is supported. Card design requirements may vary by region.

Physical cards

Lightweight program

The lightweight program is designed for platforms that want to issue physical cards quickly without upfront manufacturing costs or volume commitments. Because Airwallex maintains a pre-manufactured base card, there is no minimum order requirement and no upfront cost.

Your customization options are:

• Card front: Your company logo, thermoprinted in white.
• Card back: Your company name and a custom support phone number or email address.

The go-live process moves through the following stages:

1. Requirement gathering: You complete a questionnaire specifying your logo details and the support contact information for the back of the card.
2. Card program setup: Airwallex configures your card program using the specifications you provide.
3. Testing and sign-off: Airwallex creates a test card for your review. Once you confirm the design and functionality meet your requirements, you sign off on the program.
4. Go live: Cards go into production and are ready to issue to your cardholders.

Full white-label program

The full white-label program is designed for platforms that require complete control over their card's appearance and packaging. You work with Airwallex and Airwallex's printing vendor to design every element, including both sides of the card, the card carrier, and the envelope. Cards can be manufactured in plastic or metal.

Keep the following in mind when choosing this program:

• The go-live timeline is 5–6 months due to the bespoke manufacturing process.
• An upfront cost is required to manufacture the base card.
• The minimum order quantity is 1,000 units; orders under 10,000 units are subject to approval and a higher per-unit price.

The go-live process moves through the following stages:

1. Design: Airwallex works with you and Airwallex's printing vendor to design your card, carrier, and envelope. Airwallex guides you through the available printing techniques to ensure you are satisfied with the final design.
2. Sampling: Airwallex and Airwallex's vendor manufacture a sample of your physical card before mass production begins. You physically inspect the card, request any adjustments, and approve the quality before committing to full production.
3. Manufacturing: Airwallex works with Airwallex's printing vendor to manufacture your cards and prepare them for fulfillment and dispatch.
4. Testing: Airwallex configures your card program and works with you to perform end-to-end testing to ensure everything works as expected.
5. Go live: After successful testing, your cards are ready to issue to your cardholders.

White-label virtual cards

White-label virtual cards are the simplest white-label option. You create a card design according to standards provided by Airwallex, which enables Airwallex to obtain the necessary approvals for your launch. Airwallex manages the approval and setup process on your behalf. Typically, the go-live timeline is 3–4 weeks.

Digital wallets

Airwallex's Issuing API gives you the ability to white-label digital wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay, offering your cardholders a native provisioning experience from within your own mobile application. Digital wallet white-labeling cannot be applied independently from physical cards — your digital wallet program must use the same branding approach (lightweight or full white-label) as your physical card program.

For a detailed overview of the digital wallet program, including go-live timelines, process stages, and a breakdown of platform versus Airwallex responsibilities, see Digital wallets.

White-label 3DS

3D Secure authentication (3DS) is an authentication process that provides an additional layer of security to transactions by requiring cardholders to complete a verification step during checkout. Depending on your region and account type, you may be eligible to customize the SMS notification that cardholders receive during the 3DS verification step. The 3DS step-up screen itself cannot be white-labeled at this time.

Contact your Airwallex account manager to assess your eligibility and to learn more about this feature.

White-label issuing notifications

White-label issuing notifications let your platform control the branding of issuing-related notifications that cardholders receive via email or SMS. This product is typically used alongside other white-label programs to ensure a consistent, fully branded experience.

Airwallex offers two models:

• Co-branding model: Airwallex handles notification delivery. Cardholders receive emails that include both your platform's and Airwallex's branding. SMS notifications do not include your platform's branding. No integration work is required beyond providing your logo.
• Delegation model: Airwallex sends your platform a webhook when a cardholder notification is required. Your platform is responsible for generating and delivering the notification using your own infrastructure. Airwallex branding is not present in any notifications your cardholders receive.

The right model depends on how much control you need over the cardholder notification experience and whether you have the infrastructure to deliver notifications yourself. If complete brand control is your priority, the delegation model is the better fit. If you want a low-effort option that covers the basics, the co-branding model requires less integration work.

For technical details on implementing the delegation model, including webhook structure and data payloads for all notification types, see White-label notification delegation mode.

See also

To deepen your understanding or see how this concept applies in practice, refer to:

• Concepts:
  • Digital wallets
  • Supported card programs
  • Physical and digital cards
  • White-label notification delegation mode