Visa has launched an enhanced Subscription Manager for issuers within its Digital Issuer Solutions business.
The product lets banks and other card issuers give cardholders a single place in their banking apps to view, manage, switch and cancel recurring payments. It also includes alerts, spending insights and card-on-file management through one integration.
The launch comes as subscription spending continues to grow across streaming, software, fitness and other consumer services. Visa cited market estimates that the number of subscriptions worldwide could approach 12 billion by 2030, increasing pressure on financial institutions to give customers clearer visibility over repeat charges.
Under the new set-up, issuers can embed subscription controls in their digital channels using Visa's Digital Enablement software development kit. A collaboration with Pinwheel adds card switching and subscription cancellation across a large group of merchants without requiring users to leave their banking app.
Visa said the arrangement with Pinwheel supports switching and cancellation across more than 150 merchants, although a broader description of the launch referred to more than 100 major merchants. The service allows consumers to switch eligible subscriptions paid with any card to a Visa card, and cancellation and switching are intended to work across payment networks.
For issuers, recurring payments have become a sensitive customer-service issue because disputes and chargebacks can follow when consumers struggle to identify or stop ongoing charges. The service is intended to reduce unwanted charges and improve customer confidence in managing subscriptions.
It also gives issuers another digital feature that could help them retain customers. Pinwheel said its survey of 500 employed and banked US consumers in January found that 75% expect in-app bill management, and that more than half of Millennial and Gen Z respondents would consider changing banks to get it.
"Consumers today want clarity, control, and convenience when it comes to managing the subscriptions that touch so many parts of their lives," said Kathleen Pierce-Gilmore, Global Head of Issuing Solutions at Visa.
Visa's Digital Issuer Solutions platform is aimed at consumer-facing services that banks can add to their apps. Alongside the new subscription management feature, the platform includes digital card display, push provisioning across payment schemes and transaction controls.
Bank app push
Visa is pitching the service as a way for issuers to keep more customer activity within their own apps rather than sending users to merchant websites or third-party tools. That could matter as banks and fintech groups compete to make their apps the main touchpoint for day-to-day financial administration.
Pinwheel's role centres on bill-management workflows. Its systems allow guided cancellation for some merchants and support other subscription actions that are often difficult for users to complete directly.
"As the subscription economy has exploded, consumers have lost visibility and control over their recurring spending," said Brian Karimi-Pashaki, Chief Revenue Officer at Pinwheel. "That lack of transparency is confusing for consumers. Banks and fintechs that empower consumers to view, manage, switch, and cancel subscriptions are winning primary relationships, substantial interchange revenue, and long-term brand loyalty."
Enhanced Subscription Manager will first be available to North American issuers before expanding to Latin America and the Caribbean. Visa also indicated that further changes to its subscription-related products are planned through 2026.
The move adds to competition among payments groups, banks and fintech providers to offer consumers more direct control over recurring spending, an area that has become more prominent as households manage rising numbers of digital services and automatic renewals.
Pinwheel said its wider network covers 1,800 payroll providers, 1.5 million employers and thousands of merchants.