Apple and Goldman Sachs issue cobrand credit card

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According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple and Goldman Sachs plan to issue a cobrand credit card at the end of the year, with money management and iPhone features, following initial tests in the coming weeks. material.

The card – which had been the focus of a report last year – would feature tools connected to the Apple wallet, such as the ability to set spending goals, track rewards, manage balances and receive notifications of expenses, which would have been developed by Apple engineers. And the credit card, which will work on the Mastercard network, will offer up to 2% refund on most purchases. The credit card could allow both companies to leverage their respective skills to further penetrate the payment space with a single product.

• The card could intensify Goldman Sachs' push for products for retail and consumers. Goldman strengthened its consumer banking business, GS Bank, through several initiatives: in 2016, it acquired GE Capital and launched Marcus, its exclusively digital offering offering personal loans and an online savings account, which recently reached $ 35 billion in deposits. In addition, Goldman Sachs has acquired Final Card, a recently launched credit card business, and recently acquired Clarity Money, a personal finance management (PFM) application. , which shows a heightened interest in credit cards and personal finances. The partnership with Apple could be an effective way for Goldman to streamline its efforts to reach consumers on a large scale – especially if the card offers a cash back, which strongly encourages consumers to make a card their main card. And the card – which would mark Goldman Sachs' first credit card – could accelerate the company's goals of generating a $ 1 billion annual business turnover by 2020 thanks to its new business. personal banking services.
• For Apple, a partnership with an established financial institution could boost consumer confidence in its other payment offers. Apple plans to bring revenues from its service segment to $ 50 billion by 2020, and this credit card can help achieve this goal: Apple is currently charging fees when customers use credit cards through Apple Pay, but the cost of scanning by credit card would be more lucrative. for the company. In addition, Apple executives hope the card will boost the use of Apple Pay, according to the WSJ. Although the card is not directly related to mobile payments, it could help Apple Pay to promote and encourage its adoption – Apple Pay has exceeded the 1.8 billion transactions of the first quarter of fiscal year 2019. Apple (closed December 29, 2018) – with an estimate of about 14% of US consumers. use mobile wallets, suggesting that its user base is small. This is especially true if businesses add an Apple Pay direct integration or incentive linked to the card. And as Apple expands its presence in the payments field, this could eventually increase Apple Pay's interest, trust, and notoriety.