VAMP Ratio

What is the VAMP Ratio?

VAMP (Visa Acquirer Monitoring Program) is Visa's unified compliance framework that replaced the legacy VDMP and VFMP programs. Four VAMP metrics are available in the Disputes Dashboard pivot table, and together they let you audit the ratio rather than just read it:

  • VAMP Count — total fraud and disputed transactions. The numerator.

  • VAMP Ratio — VAMP Count as a share of settled Visa Card-Not-Present (CNP) transactions. This is what the gauge displays.

  • Visa CNP Transactions — the denominator, selectable on its own. Pull this alongside the ratio when a VAMP Ratio looks unexpectedly high, since a small CNP base inflates the ratio without any change in fraud or dispute behaviour.

  • Fraud Transactions (TC40) — the fraud half of VAMP Count, selectable on its own. This is the component most affected by the Actual vs Estimated assumption below, so isolating it tells you how much of your VAMP exposure rests on estimated data.

Because all four are separately selectable, you can place them side by side in the pivot and see exactly which input is driving a movement in the ratio.

Formula 

VAMP Count  =  Disputed Transactions (TC15) + Fraud Transactions (TC40)

                         VAMP Count
VAMP Ratio  =  ─────────────────────────────
                Visa CNP Transactions (TC05)

Key Assumptions

These are the internal logic decisions made in building our VAMP calculation. Understanding them is essential for correctly interpreting the numbers.

1. Denominator: Visa CNP Transactions

VAMP is calculated against Card-Not-Present (CNP) settled Visa transactions only, not total volume. This is a meaningful distinction: a merchant with mostly in-store transactions will have a much smaller denominator than their total volume would suggest, which can make the ratio appear higher.

Critical caveat: CNP classification is acquirer-dependent. The way we identify CNP transactions varies by acquirer based on the fields (e.g. MOTO Indicator) they provide in their data feeds. We made assumptions for the acquirers below:

Acquirer

Notes

WorldpayVAP

Default to CNP

Adyen

Default to CNP

2. Numerator: Actual TC40 vs. Estimated

The fraud component (TC40) of VAMP Count is only directly available from select acquirers. For all others, we estimate it. This is the most significant assumption in the entire calculation.

Actual — Acquirers That Provide TC40 Directly

  • Chase

  • WorldpayVAP

  • Adyen

  • Checkout

  • Braintree

  • Finaro

Estimated — Acquirers Without TC40

For acquirers without an actual TC40 feed, fraud counts are estimated using existing disputes and RDR data. Estimated TC40 logic is still being finalized for some acquirers. If you see all zero for an acquirer, then it means the data is not yet available.

The TC40 Est vs Actual field explicitly labels every acquirer as Actual or Estimated.

3. Blended VAMP for Clients with Multiple Acquirers

Many clients process through more than one acquirer. When this is the case, the rolled-up VAMP metric may combine Actual and Estimated values depending on which acquirers are in scope.

Using the "TC40 Est vs Actual" Filter

The dashboard includes a "Disputes : TC40 Est vs Actual" filter that allows you to isolate and understand the quality of the data behind any VAMP metric. It is available in:

  • Page-level filters under the Disputes tab

  • All group controllers

Filter values: Actual | Estimated

By default, the filter is unset, so the dashboard shows a blended view combining Actual and Estimated values, which gives the most complete picture of VAMP exposure.

How to use it?

Use case 1 — Assess data reliability

  1. Go to Page Filters → Disputes → TC40 Est vs Actual

  2. Select Actual

  3. Compare the VAMP Count against the unfiltered view. If the numbers drop significantly, a large share of the VAMP metrics are estimated.

Use case 2 — See which acquirers provide actual TC40 data

  1. In the pivot table, set Group 1 to MID : Acquirer

  2. Set Group 2 to Disputes : TC40 Est vs Actual

  3. The table breaks down each acquirer's VAMP Count by Actual vs Estimated, making it easy to identify which acquirers have real TC40 coverage.

Use case 3 — Work out why the ratio moved

  1. Select VAMP Ratio, VAMP Count, Fraud Transactions (TC40), and Visa CNP Transactions together in the pivot Measure control

  2. Read across the period columns. If the ratio rose while VAMP Count held steady, the denominator shrank and your CNP volume fell rather than your fraud or dispute activity rising

  3. If VAMP Count rose, check whether it came from the TC40 line or from disputes, since the two point at different remediation

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why is VAMP calculated on CNP transactions only? VAMP focuses on CNP volume because that is where fraud risk is concentrated. Card-present transactions with chip authentication carry issuer liability; CNP transactions carry acquirer/merchant liability.

Q: Will Estimated ever become Actual for currently unsupported acquirers? Yes, as acquirer expands TC40 feed coverage.

Q: What does the VAMP Ratio gauge show? The gauge displays the Month-to-Date VAMP Ratio (%) and respects all active dashboard filters. Threshold-based coloring indicates risk levels per Visa's monitoring thresholds. It sits in the Gauge Charts section of the Disputes Dashboard, in the position where a Visa dispute rate gauge would otherwise appear.