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APIs · head to head

Marqeta vs Temenos Transact

Marqeta logo

Marqeta

APIs

Card issuing and transaction processing APIs with just-in-time funding

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Temenos Transact logo

Temenos Transact

APIs

Established core banking system used by banks in over a hundred countries

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Marqeta you still need a sponsor bank and a BIN, so the timeline and compliance burden of launching are set by a bank you must separately court and satisfy.; Temenos Transact the codebase originates in the 1990s, so banks on older releases face major upgrade programmes to reach current versions, and many defer them for years.
  • They diverge on capability: Marqeta covers Just-in-time funding, Temenos Transact covers Country model banks.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Marqeta and Temenos Transact actually diverge.

Attributes where Marqeta and Temenos Transact differ
AttributeMarqetaTemenos Transact
PlatformsWeb, REST APIWeb, Linux, Windows, REST API

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (APIs).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Marqeta

  • Just-in-time funding
  • Virtual and physical issuing
  • Spend controls
  • Programme management tools
  • Multi-region issuing
  • Webhooks and ledger data

Only in Temenos Transact

  • Country model banks
  • Multi-product core
  • Payments processing
  • API layer
  • Cloud deployment
  • Accounting engine

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Marqeta

  • A delivery marketplace funding courier cards only at the moment a courier pays for the ordernot Temenos Transact
  • An expense platform issuing a virtual card per subscription with merchant locksnot Temenos Transact
  • A lender issuing a card that draws on an approved credit line rather than a stored balancenot Temenos Transact
  • A fintech wanting the same issuing stack across US and European programmesnot Temenos Transact

Temenos Transact

  • A bank in an emerging market needing local regulatory compliance without building it from scratchnot Marqeta
  • An institution running Islamic banking products alongside conventional ones on one corenot Marqeta
  • A bank that needs a large pool of experienced implementation consultants to de-risk a migrationnot Marqeta
  • A group standardising subsidiaries in several countries onto one core banking systemnot Marqeta

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Marqeta

  • You still need a sponsor bank and a BIN, so the timeline and compliance burden of launching are set by a bank you must separately court and satisfy.
  • Pricing carries minimum monthly platform commitments, so a programme with modest card volume pays for capacity it never uses.
  • Programme revenue depends heavily on interchange, which means regulated debit interchange caps and European interchange caps materially change the business case by market.
  • Disputes, chargebacks and fraud losses sit with the programme, and teams that assumed the processor absorbed them discover a real operations headcount requirement.
  • Just-in-time funding makes your own authorisation endpoint a hard availability dependency; if it is slow or down, cards decline at the point of sale.

Temenos Transact

  • The codebase originates in the 1990s, so banks on older releases face major upgrade programmes to reach current versions, and many defer them for years.
  • Total cost is dominated by implementation partner fees rather than licence, and those programmes routinely overrun their original estimates.
  • Product changes that cloud-native cores treat as configuration can require development work and a release cycle, which slows time to market for new products.
  • Heavy customisation is common and it makes every subsequent upgrade harder, creating a compounding cost that banks feel a decade after go-live.
  • Temenos has repeatedly restructured its product line and naming, so buyers must check carefully which components a proposal actually includes and which are separately licensed.

Pricing, plan by plan

Marqeta

On request
  • Marqeta card issuing$undefined/year
    • Minimum monthly platform fee plus per-transaction and per-active-card charges
    • Interchange share negotiated between programme, processor and sponsor bank
    • Sponsor bank required, with its own fees and approval process

Temenos Transact

On request
  • Temenos Transact$undefined/year
    • Perpetual or subscription licence scaled by assets, accounts or users
    • Annual maintenance typically a percentage of licence value
    • Implementation delivered by partners and charged separately

Which should you pick?

Choose Marqeta if

  • You need just-in-time funding.
  • You work on Web, REST API.
  • You also want virtual and physical issuing.
Marqeta review

Choose Temenos Transact if

  • You need country model banks.
  • You work on Web, Linux, Windows, REST API.
  • You also want multi-product core.
Temenos Transact review

Questions people ask

Is Marqeta or Temenos Transact better?
Neither clearly leads. Marqeta starts at On request and Temenos Transact at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Marqeta or Temenos Transact?
Marqeta starts at On request and Temenos Transact at On request.
Does Marqeta or Temenos Transact run on more platforms?
Marqeta runs on Web, REST API. Temenos Transact runs on Web, Linux, Windows, REST API.
What is Marqeta best used for?
Marqeta is most often used for a delivery marketplace funding courier cards only at the moment a courier pays for the order, an expense platform issuing a virtual card per subscription with merchant locks, a lender issuing a card that draws on an approved credit line rather than a stored balance, a fintech wanting the same issuing stack across us and european programmes. Of those, a delivery marketplace funding courier cards only at the moment a courier pays for the order and an expense platform issuing a virtual card per subscription with merchant locks are not what Temenos Transact is typically brought in for.
What can Marqeta do that Temenos Transact cannot?
Marqeta covers Just-in-time funding, Virtual and physical issuing, Spend controls, Programme management tools. Temenos Transact covers Country model banks, Multi-product core, Payments processing, API layer.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Marqeta: Do I need a sponsor bank?

Yes. Marqeta is an issuer processor, not a bank. Card programmes run on a sponsor bank BIN, and that bank approves and supervises your programme.

Temenos Transact: Is Transact the same as T24?

Yes. T24 was renamed Temenos Transact; older installations and much of the consultant population still use the T24 name.

Marqeta: How does the pricing really work?

A minimum monthly platform fee plus per-transaction and per-active-card charges, offset by a negotiated share of interchange. The interchange split is the substance of the deal.

Temenos Transact: Can it run in the cloud?

Yes, it is offered on public cloud, though many existing installations remain on-premises and moving them is a project.

Marqeta: What is just-in-time funding?

Marqeta calls your endpoint at authorisation so you decide and fund each transaction, rather than pre-loading balances onto cards.

Temenos Transact: What drives the cost?

Licence scaled by size, annual maintenance as a percentage of licence, and implementation partner fees that usually exceed the software cost.

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