Who Owns Your Customers’ Card Data? How to Keep Your Tokens When You Switch Processors
Last updated November 9, 2026. Whoever stores your customers’ card details controls whether you can keep billing them. With Stripe or Shopify Payments, the card tokens live in their vault, so leaving means requesting…
Daniel Mendes
Last updated November 9, 2026.
Whoever stores your customers’ card details controls whether you can keep billing them. With Stripe or Shopify Payments, the card tokens live in their vault, so leaving means requesting an export they must approve. To stay in control, keep cards in a vault you can move, or use a platform where tokens stay with you.
What a card token is
When a customer pays, the card number is replaced by a token that only works inside the vault that created it. Tokens make storing cards safe, but they also tie your recurring customers to whoever holds the vault.
Get paid in as little as 24 hours
Resub Pay opens dedicated MIDs in your name, routed by Trident — with payouts in as little as 24h on some MIDs.
Who holds your tokens today
| Setup | Who holds the tokens | Can you take them with you? |
|---|---|---|
| Stripe | Stripe | On request, exported to another PCI DSS compliant provider |
| Shopify Payments | Shopify | Ask Shopify support whether an export is possible for your account |
| Independent card vault | You, through the vault provider | Yes, the vault can send cards to several processors |
| Resub | The merchant, not the processor | Yes |
Why it matters for subscriptions
If you lose your tokens, every subscriber has to re-enter a card, and many never do. For a subscription brand, token ownership decides whether a processor change costs a week of work or a large share of recurring revenue.
How to request a token export
- Open the receiving account first and confirm it can accept a card data import.
- Ask your current provider for an export to that PCI DSS compliant recipient.
- Map customer and subscription IDs so each card lands on the right subscriber.
- Test renewals on a small group before moving everyone.
- Keep the old account open until the first full billing cycle runs cleanly.
Who should choose what
- Staying on Stripe for now: request an export plan before you need it.
- Running several processors: use an independent vault.
- Shopify subscription brand moving to dedicated merchant accounts: a platform where tokens stay with the merchant, such as Resub.
About Resub
Your MIDs, in your company’s name
Every merchant account is opened in your company’s name through our processing partners, so one decision never stops all of your sales.
Trident smart routing
Trident sends each payment to the MID most likely to approve it and shifts volume to healthier accounts automatically.
Payouts in as little as 24h
On our fastest MIDs, so you can plan ad spend on real cash instead of waiting on payouts.
A price you can read before the call
Published rates from 2.75% down to 1.25% by monthly volume, with no setup fees and reserves sized to your real business.
Frequently asked questions
Can I take my customers’ card data when I leave Stripe?
Yes, as an export to another PCI DSS compliant provider, which you request from Stripe. Plan for it before switching, not after.
What is a card vault?
A secure store for card details that returns tokens. An independent vault lets you use the same tokens with several processors.
Does switching processors cancel my subscriptions?
Not if the tokens move with you. If they do not, customers must re-enter their cards and many will churn.
Who holds the card tokens with Resub?
The merchant. With Resub, card tokens stay with the merchant, not the processor.
Related: how to open your own merchant accounts
Written by
Daniel Mendes · Co-founder, Resub
With seven years in digital entrepreneurship, Daniel is the strategic architect behind Resub, focused on giving high-risk merchants the control over their cash flow that mainstream processors deny them.
About DanielAbout Resub