Beyond LOS & LMS: What Else You Need to Launch a Credit Card Program

What operations infrastructure do you need beyond your LMS and LOS? Even “full-suite” LMSs and LOSs will leave some gaps. Adding to the confusion, many LMSs and LOSs partially cover some essential functions — for example, they might advertise payment acceptance, but can they handle mailed paper checks? They might have fraud features, but are they adequate for your product?

Trust us: you want to address those gaps before launch, not discover them after. To build a compliant, scalable, and overall well-run credit card program, ensure you have a solution for all of the following.

1. Credit Bureau Integration

Most fintech teams underestimate the complexity of working with credit bureaus until it slows down onboarding or underwriting. For your credit decisioning, your LOS should handle the application stage bureau data integration, but there are still several areas you’ll need to make sure you’re covering, including:

• Map bureau data to your underwriting model

• Generate Metro 2 files for monthly performance reporting

• Fully handle disputes

Getting these right is table stakes for regulatory compliance and sponsor bank acceptance.

2. Statements & Disclosures

Credit card issuers are required to deliver monthly statements that meet specific formatting, timing, and content rules under Reg Z.

You’ll also need to handle delivery preferences (print vs. digital), opt-ins, and retention rules.

This isn’t a simple PDF export. You need a robust statement generation and delivery process—whether built in-house or outsourced.

3. Card Manufacturing & Fulfillment

Your processor may help with this, but you still need to make decisions:

• Physical vs. virtual (or both)?

• Who handles production, packaging, and shipping?

• How do you trigger card creation from your own systems?

You’ll also need to manage card lifecycle events (lost/stolen, reissue, expiration) and tie them into your servicing and support flows.

4. Payment Acceptance & Processing

Your users need a way to pay their bills! There’s more to it than you think:

• Accepting ACH, bill payment, paper checks (yes!), and possibly debit cards

• Managing payment holds and returns (NSFs)

• Defining cutoff times and posting logic

• Building payment confirmation and reminders into your UI

• Handling overpayments, chargebacks, and refunds

Some LMS platforms offer payment processing as a feature, to varying degrees.

5. Servicing & Customer Support Infrastructure

Servicing is the operational backbone of your program. You'll need to:

• Route inquiries and disputes

• Manage fraud and transaction investigations

• Handle escalations and compliance-related requests

• Coordinate with your processor, BPO, and sponsor bank

And if you’re planning to outsource, you still need to define the playbooks and train the teams to keep the customer experience consistent and manage regulatory risk.

6. Fraud, KYC, and Risk Monitoring

The more credit exposure you take, the more these systems matter. Many lenders end up layering multiple third-party tools.

• Ongoing transaction monitoring

• Real-time fraud scoring

• Case management tools for investigations

• Dispute resolution workflows

Where Ensemblex Comes In

Having the right operations infrastructure makes all the difference for your customers, your bottom line, and your team. If you’re planning a credit product and want to get it right from day one, we should talk.