How fintechs can use data to enhance decision making

Fast access to rich transaction data can help fintechs gain an edge

Many B2B fintechs take a data-driven, API-first approach, building their core value propositions around the ability to act on data in near real-time. To compete effectively, fintechs are often looking to access key data points as early as possible.

For card transactions, leading fintechs can use data as a strategic asset to fuel differentiated decision making and analysis. Near real-time signals are typically used by fintechs and their processor partners to inform and strengthen fraud risk management postures, but they can also be used by fintechs to help offer advanced spend controls, improve cash flow visibility, develop automated workflows and more.

Powering more agile risk protection

Real-time decisioning at authorization is crucial, as it allows fintech processors to respond dynamically to evolving fraud trends and behaviors and use highly targeted risk scoring and decisioning workflows to approve or decline payments with greater precision. Enhanced fraud risk strategies that incorporate near real-time data are more crucial today than ever before, as fraud threats continue to evolve in sophistication and scale, driven in part by AI-powered attack schemes.

Fintechs looking to mitigate fraud risk should consider partnering with processors that offer advanced real-time authorization decisioning capabilities.

The unique value of card data

Compared to check and many forms of ACH, card transactions can offer faster and more actionable flow of information filled with more robust and standardized data. Fintechs that offer card solutions can use card data to create smarter, more responsive customer experiences that help meet rising demand within the B2B sector for consumer-level payments experiences.

Early access to enriched data at authorization can help fintechs improve approval rates and keep good payments flowing — increasing payment volumes and delivering a smooth customer experience. For example, tokenized transactions can help drive an authorization uplift of up to 4% by improving the quality and speed of data available at authorization and strengthening trust in each transaction.

< 4 % uplift in authorization when tokenized transactions are used¹

Rich transaction data (e.g., Level II and Level III data) can also enable fintechs to deliver highly granular dynamic spend controls and just-in-time funding capabilities, giving corporate finance teams the visibility and control they need to ensure compliance with established spend policies. Managers can see not only where a purchase was made, but also itemized detail, delivery address, and more.

Fintechs can further leverage real-time status data to increase visibility into cash flow across a range of spend management workflows. For example, a fintech could use authorization, clearance and settlement data to populate a dashboard that shows corporates a list of in-process transactions that have not yet settled.

Detailed merchant metadata also helps unlock automated reconciliation workflows, helping fintechs deliver time and cost savings for corporate finance teams while also improving accuracy and transparency — and reducing friction and human error. Automating these workflows can help fintechs increase solution stickiness and reduce downstream support burden.

Driving Portfolio Growth

Fintechs that incorporate real-time transaction data can position themselves to meet rising demand for easy access to working capital. By better understanding the payments needs of their clients, they can extend or adjust credit lines in near real-time, offer more targeted card solutions, and even help drive supplier acceptance — helping transition more spend from check of ACH onto card.

By acting on real-time card data as early as possible, fintechs can take a more proactive role in supporting their customers. Fintechs that build around speed, responsiveness and clarity of data can differentiate experiences, enhance core offerings and help drive better business outcomes for their customers — all of which can help fintechs position themselves to gain an edge in a highly competitive marketplace.

The opportunity is clear: fintechs should treat authorization as more than a fraud checkpoint — it’s a critical strategic signal that can help drive smarter workflows and more profitable growth.

Partnering with an experienced payments network like Visa — which offers a 20+-year track record of delivering enriched transaction information at scale — can give fintechs the trusted data, intelligence and payments infrastructure they need to fuel their growth engines.

Stay ahead of spend and fraud trends

To learn more about Visa’s real-time decisioning and enriched data offerings for fintechs, contact the Fintech Partnerships Team today:

Fintech Partnerships Team

1. Visa, 2025. “A deep dive on tokens”. https://corporate.visa.com/en/solutions/commercial-solutions/knowledge-hub/tokenization.html