Mastercard Mandate AN4569: Enhanced Merchant Data Requirements for Issuers
Comply with Mastercard mandate AN4569. Understand the requirements and discover how to exceed them with Snowdrop's MRS API.
- Published
Mastercard AN4569 requires issuers in specified European countries to provide enhanced merchant data to help cardholders recognise transactions. Here’s what issuers need to know about the requirements, scope and options for compliance.
What Is Mastercard Mandate
AN4569?
Mastercard AN4569, formally known as the Revised Standards for the Display of Enhanced Merchant Data by Issuers, introduced new requirements for how Mastercard issuers present transaction information to cardholders.
The mandate addresses a common problem: a transaction can appear on a bank statement without giving the cardholder enough context to identify the merchant.
A recognisable merchant name, location, contact details and logo can make it easier for a cardholder to understand a payment without having to investigate the transaction themselves.
AN4569 sets a standard for providing this enhanced merchant data when it is available.
Who Must Comply With AN4569 and Since When?
The Mastercard mandate came into effect on 14 October 2023.
It applies to Mastercard issuers in specified countries across the Europe region. The requirements cover countries including the UK, Spain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Sweden, among others. Mastercard’s rules specify the full list of countries covered by the requirement.
For covered issuers, enhanced merchant data must be provided to cardholders when available to help them recognise a transaction when they query it.
The data must be accessible through the issuer’s:
- Banking application
- Mobile wallet
- Internet banking interface
- Another digital channel providing at least equivalent ease and accessibility
This makes AN4569 more than a data requirement. Issuers also need to consider how that information reaches the customer and how clearly it is presented within the banking experience.
AN4569 Requirements: The Merchant Data Issuers Must Display
Mastercard AN4569 specifies the enhanced merchant information that issuers should provide to cardholders when available.
The required merchant information includes the merchant’s public-facing or “doing business as” name, location, contact details and logo.
Merchant Name
The merchant name should help the cardholder identify the business behind a transaction.
Payment data can often contain abbreviated, technical or unfamiliar merchant descriptors. These may be sufficient for processing a payment but provide little context to the person reviewing their transactions.
Resolving the transaction to the merchant’s public-facing or “doing business as” name gives cardholders a clearer reference point.
This is particularly important for businesses that trade under a different brand name from their legal entity or payment descriptor.
Merchant Address and Location
Location provides another layer of context for identifying a merchant.
A cardholder may recognise a merchant more easily when they can see where the purchase took place, particularly when the transaction descriptor alone is unfamiliar.
AN4569 includes the merchant’s location as part of the enhanced merchant data that issuers should provide when available.
For issuers, reliable location data can also create opportunities to improve the wider transaction experience, from showing a merchant on a map to helping customers understand where they spend their money.
Merchant Website and Phone Number
Contact details give cardholders a direct way to identify or contact the merchant associated with a transaction.
This can be particularly useful when a customer needs to query a payment, check a purchase or contact a business directly.
Presenting this information within the banking experience can reduce the effort required to find the right merchant and understand a transaction.
Merchant Logo
A merchant logo provides an immediate visual cue that can make transaction recognition easier.
Customers often scan a list of transactions rather than read every detail. A familiar logo can help them identify a merchant quickly, particularly when the payment descriptor is unclear.
The merchant logo is also included in the enhanced merchant data required under AN4569 when available.
For digital banking teams, it also provides an opportunity to make transaction information more visual and easier to navigate.
Merchant Category Code (MCC)
MCC data can add useful context to a transaction by indicating the type of business involved, from restaurants and supermarkets to travel providers and professional services.
However, it is important to distinguish between data that supports transaction enrichment and data explicitly listed in the AN4569 requirement.
Mastercard's enhanced merchant data requirements specifically refer to the merchant's public-facing name, location, contact details and logo. MCC is not listed as one of these core fields.
Issuers can still use MCC and other categorisation data to add context beyond the minimum requirement and create a more informative transaction experience.
How to Comply With AN4569:
In-House Build or Transaction
Enrichment API
Meeting AN4569 requires issuers to source, resolve and present merchant information reliably at scale.
For banks processing millions of transactions, doing this internally involves considerably more than adding a few fields to a transaction record.
An in-house solution may require teams to manage merchant data sources, matching logic, location information, logo assets, data quality and ongoing maintenance. Coverage also needs to be maintained as merchants change names, locations, websites or contact details.
A transaction enrichment API provides an alternative approach. Instead of building and maintaining the entire enrichment layer internally, issuers can connect their existing transaction data to a specialist service that resolves and enriches merchant information.
The choice between these approaches will depend on an issuer’s existing infrastructure, data capabilities and long-term product strategy. The key considerations include:
- Coverage: Can the solution resolve the merchants and transactions the issuer processes?
- Accuracy: How reliably does it identify the correct merchant and associated information?
- Data availability: Can it provide the fields required by AN4569 when available?
- Integration: How easily can enriched data be incorporated into existing banking applications and transaction flows?
- Maintenance: Who manages changes to merchant information and data sources?
- Scalability: Can the solution support the issuer’s transaction volumes without creating additional operational complexity?
- Time to implementation: How quickly can the issuer move from raw transaction data to a compliant customer experience?
Snowdrop’s Merchant Resolution System (MRS) API enriches raw transaction data with verified merchant information, including merchant names, logos, locations and contact details.
It also provides additional enrichment such as multi-level transaction categorisation and eco insights, allowing issuers to build experiences that extend beyond the core AN4569 requirements.
For one bank processing more than 150 million transactions per month, Snowdrop’s transaction enrichment solution helped reduce call centre costs by 30%, equivalent to approximately £333,760 in monthly savings.
Why Complying With the
Mastercard Mandate Matters
Adhering to Mastercard's AN4569 mandate is crucial for several reasons:
- Enhanced Customer Experience: Clear and accurate merchant information empowers customers to make informed decisions.
- Reduced Chargebacks: Detailed merchant data can help prevent disputes and chargebacks.
- Strengthened Security: Protecting merchant data is essential for safeguarding customer information.
- Regulatory Adherence: Non-compliance can result in significant penalties.
Mastercard is not the only card network moving towards enhanced merchant data requirements. Visa has introduced similar requirements for issuers in specified European markets, with its mandate taking effect in January 2027.
AN4569 Compliance Checklist for Issuers
Issuers covered by Mastercard AN4569 should consider the following when reviewing their compliance approach:
- Confirm scope: Establish whether the issuer and relevant card programmes fall within the countries covered by AN4569.
- Check effective date: AN4569 has applied to covered issuers since 14 October 2023.
- Resolve merchant names: Ensure transaction data can be linked to the merchant’s public-facing or “doing business as” name when available.
- Provide location: Make the merchant’s location available alongside the transaction when available.
- Provide contact details: Include relevant merchant contact information, including website and telephone details when available.
- Provide merchant logos: Make merchant logos available when they can be sourced reliably.
- Review customer access: Ensure enhanced merchant data is available through the banking app, mobile wallet, online banking or an equivalent digital channel.
- Assess data quality: Check that merchant information is accurate, consistent and maintained as merchant details change.
- Evaluate the operating model: Decide whether an in-house solution or specialist transaction enrichment API provides the right balance of control, coverage, maintenance and implementation speed.
- Look beyond compliance: Consider whether additional enrichment such as categorisation, verified locations and other merchant insights could improve the customer experience further.
AN4569 establishes a clear standard for the merchant information issuers provide to cardholders. Meeting that standard starts with reliable merchant data and depends on how effectively that information is made available within the banking experience.
For issuers, the value of transaction enrichment can extend beyond compliance. More accurate and recognisable transaction data can reduce customer effort, improve digital experiences and give customers more useful context around their everyday spending.
FAQs About Mastercard Mandate AN4569
1. What is Mastercard AN 4569?
Mastercard AN 4569, formally known as the Revised Standards for the Display of Enhanced Merchant Data by Issuers, is a requirement for covered issuers in Europe to provide additional merchant information to cardholders. The standard is designed to make transaction details easier to understand and help customers identify the business behind a payment.
2. What is the Mastercard mandate for enhanced merchant data?
The Mastercard mandate requires covered issuers to provide enhanced merchant data to cardholders when available. This includes the merchant’s public-facing name, location, contact details and logo. The information must be accessible through digital banking channels such as banking applications, mobile wallets or internet banking interfaces to help customers understand their transactions.
3. When did the Mastercard AN4569 mandate come into effect?
Mastercard AN4569 came into effect on 14 October 2023 for covered issuers in the Europe region. The requirement is already in force, while Visa’s Enhanced Merchant Data requirement is scheduled to take effect on 23 January 2027. Issuers operating across both schemes therefore need to consider two different compliance timelines.
4. What merchant data does AN4569 require issuers to show?
AN4569 requires covered issuers to provide enhanced merchant data when available, including the merchant’s public-facing or “doing business as” name, location, contact details and logo. Issuers can also use additional transaction data such as MCC and categorisation to provide more context, although these are not listed as core AN4569 requirements.
