cardtowallet

Cardtowallet refers to a class of systems and workflows designed to digitize physical payment cards into a secure digital wallet on a mobile device or other token-capable hardware. The goal is to enable card-present and card-not-present transactions through a single, portable interface while reducing exposure of actual card numbers. In practice, cardtowallet implementations tokenize card details, replacing the real PAN with a surrogate token used in transactions, and bind the token to a specific device or user profile.

Enrollment typically begins when a user or issuer provisions a card into a supported wallet. The card data is transmitted in a PCI-compliant environment to a token service provider or the issuer, which generates a token and cryptographic credential. The wallet stores the token and, often, a device-specific cryptographic key or cipher, enabling secure payment authorization through contactless NFC or in-app purchases.

During a transaction, the merchant or payment terminal communicates with the card network using the token instead of the raw card number. The network or issuer validates the token, applies risk checks, and authorizes the transaction, returning an approval or denial to the terminal. Private data, such as the cardholder name and expiry date, may be stored locally only as non-sensitive metadata, with full data kept by the issuer or token service.

Security considerations include compliance with PCI DSS, secure element or trusted execution environment use, tokenization, biometric or passcode authorization, and remote revocation in case of loss. Interoperability relies on common standards for token formats, card networks, and wallet platforms, which can limit cross-ecosystem compatibility. Cardtowallet is widely used in modern digital wallets but varies by region and issuer.