To integrate the Marqeta API into your app and create virtual cards, you can follow these steps:
-
Get Access: Create an account at Marqeta to get access to the API sandbox. This is a private environment where you can safely work with sensitive data. After verifying your email address and logging in, you can use the built-in API Explorer, which has a basic UI for interacting with the Marqeta API. You can obtain API keys for accessing this environment externally by hovering over your initials in the upper right and selecting "MY API KEYS".
-
Perform One-Time Setup: Create a couple of API objects that will be necessary to start generating and using cards. Namely, a card product and a funding source. Card products define many different card behaviors, such as whether activation is required, whether ATM withdrawals are allowed, and whether Just-In-Time (JIT) Funding is enabled. Every card must be associated with a card product. Funding sources facilitate the addition of dollars into accounts. In order for a card transaction to be approved there must be some money loaded into the cardholder's account, and that money must come from somewhere - a funding source.
-
Transact: Now that you have access and have completed the necessary setup, you can start creating cards and simulating transactions. First, create a user (every card must have a user). Then create a card - note that your card product defines the cards to be activated upon issue, so no need to explicitly activate. Then fund the account using the program funding source token created in step 2. Lastly, simulate a transaction coming in from an external merchant.
