Capital One Moves Credit Cards to Discover

Just over a year after starting integration with Discover, Capital One has completed the transfer of approximately 25 million debit cards to the Discover network. The company is now focusing on credit cards. In a quarterly earnings call, Capital One reported that it has begun testing the transfer of some credit cards to the Discover payment network, moving away from Visa, where these accounts were previously serviced. The primary Venture X card remains on Visa along with co-branded cards from T-Mobile, Kohl’s, and Bass Pro Shops/Cabela’s, although this may change as the migration progresses.

"We are actively testing the transfer of existing Capital One accounts to the Discover network," noted Chairman and CEO Richard Fairbank.

Mass Migration

Capital One plans to kick off the conversion of its existing Discover card portfolio, known as the "back book," as soon as July, with additional phases scheduled for October and January. The company remains on track to achieve the full $2.5 billion in savings expected from the merger by the second half of 2027.

The merger of Capital One and Discover, completed in May 2025, is being implemented in stages. One of the challenges is the more limited international acceptance of Discover compared to Visa and Mastercard. In the call, Capital One stated that it is working on expanding Discover’s acceptance worldwide, focusing on markets like Mexico, the Caribbean, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

"Some are wondering why it’s taking so long, but apparently, the migration is proceeding at a suitable pace," said Brian Riley, Director of Credit at Javelin Strategy & Research.

Slow Start for Discover

Discover’s performance post-integration with Capital One has been mixed. The volume of purchases using Discover cards grew by less than 2% year-on-year, while loans on Discover cards shrank by 1.5%. In contrast, purchase volumes in other Capital One businesses, including recently acquired fintech Brex, increased by around 14%.

Capital One executives view the slowdown in loan growth for Discover cards as expected and likely temporary. Discover had already reduced the issuance of new accounts prior to the acquisition, which impacted short-term growth.