What Is BIN Sponsorship and How Does It Work?

If you’ve ever considered launching your own branded card - whether for business spending, payroll, customer rewards or digital wallets - you’ve likely faced the same challenge: how to issue cards legally and securely without becoming a bank. The answer? BIN sponsorship.

BIN sponsorship allows you to issue payment cards through a licensed partner who already holds scheme memberships and regulatory permissions. It’s a gateway that unlocks speed, compliance, and innovation - especially in today’s fast-moving fintech environment.

What Is a BIN (Bank Identification Number)?

A BIN, or Bank Identification Number, is the numeric prefix of a payment card, typically the first six to eight digits. It identifies the issuing institution and routes transactions through the correct payment network. In short, it tells the card schemes - like Mastercard or Visa - who the issuer is. Without a BIN, you can’t legally issue payment cards.

BIN sponsorship means partnering with a regulated institution - such as a bank or Electronic Money Institution (EMI) - that already holds a BIN and the necessary licences. They extend access to this BIN, along with their regulatory infrastructure, so you can launch your own card programme without needing direct scheme membership.

Why BIN Sponsorship Matters for Your Business

Developing a card issuing capability from scratch requires time, capital, and extensive regulatory approval. For most businesses, especially those in fintech or platform-based services, this isn’t feasible. BIN sponsorship significantly shortens the route to market - from several years to a matter of months. It also eliminates the need to maintain direct compliance with schemes, making the process far more accessible and efficient.

Whether you're planning to issue prepaid business cards, debit cards, or virtual travel cards, BIN sponsorship provides the infrastructure, scheme connectivity, and legal backing needed to launch confidently.

As your Mastercard BIN sponsor, Amaiz ensures full compliance with all scheme and regulatory requirements - including dedicated BIN registration, ongoing training, and programme oversight -  so you don’t have to.

Who Needs BIN Sponsorship?

BIN sponsorship is particularly valuable for businesses aiming to enhance their financial services offerings without becoming a licensed issuer themselves. Fintech startups and neobanks benefit by being able to offer fully branded card services right out of the gate. Payroll and HR platforms use it to issue employee cards for salary disbursement and expense management. Travel and FX services gain an efficient way to distribute multi-currency cards. E-commerce marketplaces and gig economy platforms streamline payouts to vendors or contractors using prepaid or debit cards.

Any business model that involves managing money movement - whether incoming, outgoing, or peer-to-peer - can benefit from the compliant infrastructure provided by BIN sponsorship.

Are You a Programme Operator or Partner?

If you're planning to launch a card offering - whether for customers, employees, or users - it’s important to understand the role you may play under Mastercard’s partnership model. Depending on your structure, you may be classified as:

• Sponsored Programme Manager (SPM): You manage the full card programme, including customer onboarding, card issuance, and user experience - typically while operating under a BIN sponsor’s licence.
• Affiliate: You’re a regulated entity linked to a BIN Sponsor, able to issue under their umbrella without holding your own Mastercard membership.
• Co-Brand Partner: You contribute brand, distribution, or customer experience elements to a card product, but don’t handle the regulated financial activity directly.

Whichever model applies to your business, Amaiz will guide you through onboarding, compliance, and programme setup - ensuring your role is clearly defined and fully aligned with Mastercard’s 2025 standards.

How BIN Sponsorship Works: Step-by-Step

The journey starts with selecting a BIN sponsor - a licensed financial institution with the appropriate scheme memberships and regulatory standing. It's vital to choose a partner that matches your geographical focus and technical needs.

Next, your business undergoes a thorough compliance review. This step involves providing documentation on your AML and KYC practices, demonstrating risk mitigation protocols, and sharing technical documentation. The sponsor ensures that your business meets the required standards to operate under their regulatory umbrella.

Once approved, you are granted access to a BIN. This may be shared with other programmes for a quicker, lower-cost launch or dedicated solely to your brand for more control and customisation.

System integration follows, where your technical team works with the sponsor's platform to enable API connections, configure card issuance processes, and integrate with payment wallets such as Apple Pay or Google Pay. Branding elements, such as card design and user interface, are implemented to align with your customer experience.

After successful testing and final checks, your programme goes live. Your customers or users receive physical or virtual cards that can be used globally through networks like Mastercard.

Even after launch, your sponsor remains an active partner. They handle settlement processes, monitor for fraud, manage disputes, and ensure all regulatory obligations are met. Meanwhile, you focus on user experience, customer service, and scaling your offering.

BIN Sponsorship Costs and Implementation Timeline

Launching a card programme via BIN sponsorship is far more efficient than becoming a scheme member yourself. The typical implementation timeline ranges from three to six months, depending on the complexity of your business and the readiness of your internal systems.

Costs can vary significantly depending on the customer’s specific circumstances. Card issuance and transaction fees also vary based on your card volumes, card type, and geographic reach.

Although these figures may seem substantial, they pale in comparison to the costs of building a card-issuing institution independently. Plus, BIN sponsorship allows you to generate revenue from interchange fees, account fees, and additional financial services layered into your card offering.

Best Practices for BIN Sponsorship Success

To get the most out of BIN sponsorship, it’s crucial to align with a sponsor who not only meets regulatory requirements but also shares your vision for customer experience and innovation. This ensures smoother onboarding and long-term strategic fit.

Internally, your business must maintain robust compliance processes. AML and KYC responsibilities are shared with the sponsor, so your systems need to be airtight. Planning for growth is equally important. Starting with a shared BIN is cost-effective, but migrating to a dedicated BIN over time allows for better data visibility, control, and branding.

Monitoring programme performance using analytics is another vital step. Real-time insights help you fine-tune fraud controls, optimise card features, and maximise user satisfaction. Meanwhile, your customer journey - from card request to first transaction - should be seamless, intuitive, and on-brand.

BIN Sponsorship with Amaiz: Mastercard-Compliant, Scalable, and Fast

At Amaiz, we specialise in helping businesses bring card programmes to life through Mastercard BIN sponsorship. As a UK-licensed Electronic Money Institution, we offer our clients direct access to the Mastercard network, allowing them to launch compliant card services swiftly and securely.

Our infrastructure supports both physical and virtual card issuance, complete with digital wallet integration. We manage the regulatory side - KYC, AML, fraud monitoring, and reporting - so you can concentrate on customer experience and product development. With transparent pricing, dedicated onboarding, and scalable support, we ensure that your journey from concept to cardholder is smooth, efficient, and fully compliant.

💡 Ready to launch your card programme?

Let’s build something trusted, scalable, and fully compliant - together.

Contact Amaiz today to discover how Mastercard BIN sponsorship can power your next big product.