Digital wallet tokenization

What is a digital wallet?

A digital wallet securely stores payment information and credentials for electronic transactions. You don't need physical cards. The benefits include:

1. Security benefits (the big win)

Tokenization returns tokens (not real card numbers) when someone steals data

Merchant tokens only work in specific places (like one specific phone or one specific merchant)

Stolen tokens are worthless elsewhere

Real-world example

Think of tokens like hotel key cards. If someone steals your hotel key card, they can only open your room at that hotel. They cannot use it at other hotels or for anything else. Stealing your actual house key would be much worse. That works everywhere.

Business impact

Lower fraud losses

Fewer customer complaints

Better security without more work

2. Better customer experience

What it means

Add a card to Apple Pay in seconds

Use the same card on phone, watch, and tablet

Get automatic updates when cards expire

Real-world example

Before tokenization, your card expiration forced you to update your card number on 15 different websites expired. With tokenization, that happens automatically. Netflix, Spotify, gym membership - all keep working.

Business impact

Fewer failed payments

Less customer frustration

Lower support costs

Card provisioning

Card provisioning is the process of adding a payment card to a digital wallet (Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, etc.). Cross River P1 supports multiple provisioning methods to enable cardholders to securely add their cards to digital wallets.

Supported networks	Supported wallets
Visa Token Service (VTS) Mastercard Digital Enablement Service (MDES)	Apple Pay Google Pay Samsung Pay

Provisioning types

1. Manual provisioning

Description: Cardholder manually enters card details into the digital wallet app

Flow:

%%{init: {'theme': 'base', 'themeVariables': {'noteBkgColor': '#fff3cd', 'noteTextColor': '#333'}}}%%
sequenceDiagram
    box rgba(66, 133, 244, 0.3)
        participant CH as 🧑 Cardholder
    end
    box rgba(52, 168, 83, 0.3)
        participant W as 📱 Wallet App<br/>(Apple Pay / Google Pay)
    end
    box rgba(234, 67, 53, 0.3)
        participant CN as 🌐 Card Network<br/>(VTS / MDES)
    end
    box rgba(142, 36, 170, 0.3)
        participant CR as 🏦 Cross River P1
    end

    Note over CH,CR: 1️⃣ Cardholder Opens Wallet

    CH->>W: Opens wallet app

    Note over CH,CR: 2️⃣ Enters Card Details

    CH->>W: Enters card details
    Note right of CH: • Primary Account Number (PAN)<br/>• Expiry date<br/>• CVV

    Note over CH,CR: 3️⃣ Tokenization Request

    W->>CN: Sends tokenization request

    Note over CH,CR: 4️⃣ Forward to Issuer

    CN->>CR: Forwards request to<br/>Cross River P1

    Note over CH,CR: 5️⃣ Risk Checks & Validation

    CR->>CR: Performs risk checks<br/>and validation

    Note over CH,CR: 6️⃣ Additional Verification

    alt Additional verification required
        CR-->>CH: Requests OTP<br/>(via SMS or email)
        CH->>CR: Submits OTP
    end

    Note over CH,CR: 7️⃣ Token Creation

    CR-->>CN: Approves tokenization
    CN->>CN: Creates and activates token

    Note over CH,CR: 8️⃣ Token Stored

    CN-->>W: Delivers token
    W->>W: Token stored securely<br/>in wallet

    Note over W: 🔒 Token is device-bound<br/>and ready for use

Cardholder opens wallet app (Apple Pay, Google Pay, etc.)

Cardholder enters card details:

Primary Account Number (PAN)

Expiry date

Wallet sends tokenization request to card network (VTS or MDES)

Card network forwards request to Cross River P1

Cross River P1 performs risk checks and validation

Cross River P1 may require additional verification (OTP via SMS or email)

Upon approval, card network creates and activates token

Token is stored securely in the wallet

Use case:

Cardholder adding card for the first time

Cardholder doesn't have access to partner's mobile app

Standard wallet provisioning without pre-authentication

Advantages & disadvantages:

Advantages	Disadvantages
Works with any wallet app No partner app required Standard industry process	Manual data entry (friction) May require additional OTP verification Slower provisioning process

2. Tap to provision (NFC provisioning)

Description: Cardholder taps physical card to smartphone to provision card to digital wallet

Flow:

%%{init: {'theme': 'base', 'themeVariables': {'noteBkgColor': '#fff3cd', 'noteTextColor': '#333'}}}%%
sequenceDiagram
    box rgba(66, 133, 244, 0.3)
        participant CH as 🧑 Cardholder
    end
    box rgba(52, 168, 83, 0.3)
        participant W as 📱 Wallet App
    end
    box rgba(255, 152, 0, 0.3)
        participant PC as 💳 Physical Card<br/>(NFC)
    end
    box rgba(234, 67, 53, 0.3)
        participant CN as 🌐 Card Network<br/>(VTS / MDES)
    end
    box rgba(142, 36, 170, 0.3)
        participant CR as 🏦 Cross River P1
    end

    Note over CH,CR: 1️⃣ Open Wallet App

    CH->>W: Opens wallet app<br/>on smartphone

    Note over CH,CR: 2️⃣ Tap Physical Card

    CH->>PC: Taps physical card<br/>to phone

    Note over CH,CR: 3️⃣ NFC Card Read

    PC-->>W: Phone reads card data via NFC
    Note right of PC: • Primary Account Number (PAN)<br/>• Expiry date

    Note over CH,CR: 4️⃣ Tokenization Request

    W->>CN: Sends tokenization request

    Note over CH,CR: 5️⃣ Forward to Issuer

    CN->>CR: Forwards request to<br/>Cross River P1

    Note over CH,CR: 6️⃣ Validation & Risk Checks

    CR->>CR: Validates card and<br/>performs risk checks

    Note over CH,CR: 7️⃣ Additional Verification

    alt Verification required
        CR-->>CH: Requests OTP<br/>(via SMS or email)
        CH->>CR: Submits OTP
    end

    Note over CH,CR: 8️⃣ Token Created

    CR-->>CN: Approves tokenization
    CN->>CN: Creates and activates token

    Note over CH,CR: 9️⃣ Card Added to Wallet

    CN-->>W: Delivers token
    W->>W: Card added to wallet
    Note over W: 🔒 Ready for contactless<br/>payments

Cardholder opens wallet app on smartphone

Cardholder taps physical card to phone (NFC)

Phone reads card data via NFC (PAN, expiry)

Wallet sends tokenization request to card network

Card network forwards request to Cross River P1

Cross River P1 validates card and performs risk checks

Cross River P1 may require verification (OTP)

Token created and activated

Card added to wallet

Use Case:

Quick provisioning without manual data entry

Cardholder has physical card and NFC-enabled phone

Alternative to manual entry

Advantages and disadvantages:

Advantages	Disadvantages
No manual typing required Fast card data capture via NFC Works with physical card	Requires NFC-enabled phone Requires physical card in hand May still require OTP verification

Availability:

Visa: Supported via Visa Token Service

Mastercard: Supported via MDES

Cross River P1: All cards are contactless-enabled and support Tap to Provision

Provisioning comparison

Type	User Effort	Speed	OTP Required?	Partner App Required?	Best For
Manual	High (typing)	Slow	Often	No	First-time users
Tap to provision	Low (1 tap)	Fast	Sometimes	No	Physical card owners

Post-provisioning process

After any provisioning method, the following occurs:

Token creation:

Card network (VTS or MDES) issues device-specific token

Token is cryptographically linked to original card

Token is unique to device and wallet combination

Token storage:

Token stored securely in device's secure element

Original PAN never stored on device

Token cannot be extracted or cloned

Token activation:

Visa/Mastercard activates token

Token status updated in Cross River P1 system

Card ready for transactions

Token management:

Cross River P1 can suspend, resume, or delete tokens

Partner can manage tokens via API

Cardholder can manage tokens via wallet app

Cross River P1 provisioning capabilities

Cross River P1 manages provisioning tasks including:

1. Risk checks

Geolocation validation

Cardholder verification

Fraud detection

2. Token status updates

Token activation

Token suspension

Token resumption

Token deletion

3. Token lifecycle management

Monitor token usage

Track token status

Process token renewal

Use cases

Use case 1: First-time cardholder (manual provisioning)

Scenario: New cardholder receives physical card, no mobile app

Implementation:

Cardholder opens Apple Pay or Google Pay

Manually enters card details

Receives OTP via SMS

Completes verification

Result:

Standard provisioning flow

Additional friction (manual entry + OTP)

Longer time-to-wallet (minutes)

Use case 2: Quick provisioning (tap to provision)

Scenario: Cardholder has physical card and NFC phone

Implementation:

Cardholder opens wallet app

Taps card to phone

Card data captured via NFC

OTP verification (if required)

Result:

Faster than manual (no typing)

Moderate friction (tap + possible OTP)

Medium time-to-wallet

Network-specific features

Visa Token Service (VTS)

Supported Provisioning Types:

Manual provisioning

Tap to provision

Key Features:

Cloud Token Framework (CTF) for connected devices

Visa Card Enrollment Hub (VCEH) for merchant-initiated provisioning

Multi-device token management

Risk-based authentication

Mastercard Digital Enablement Service (MDES)

Supported provisioning types:

Manual provisioning

Tap to provision (NFC Provisioning)

Key features:

Remote Notification Service for token status updates

Token Lifecycle Management

Multi-device tokenization

Enhanced security with cryptographic authentication