Apple and Goldman Sachs to unleash iPhone/card combo
Goldman Sachs has teamed up with Apple to issue credit cards paired with iPhones for improved money management.
Testing, testing
According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing people familiar with the matter, the card, which will be linked with Apple’s Wallet app, will allow users to set spending goals, track rewards, and manage balances.
This follows on from May 2018, when news filtered out that they were planning to launch this new credit card.
Today (21 February), we have more information. The new cards will be rolled out to employees for testing in the next few weeks and will be launched later this year.
For Apple, this gives it a boost for its mobile payments and – on a non-fintech note – its music streaming after a recent dip in iPhone sales, which generate most of the company’s profit.
Goldman is also looking to increase its consumer loans to counter the dip in its trading business.
Apple and Goldman declined to comment.
The joint card will use Mastercard’s payment network and offers a cash back of about 2% on most purchases.
Spending on Apple products and services could potentially result in more cashbacks, some of the people tell WSJ.
Goldman Sachs has already started adding customer-support call centres, and building an internal system to handle payments, a project that could cost the bank $200 million, WSJ says.
The bank could eventually offer other financial products, such as Marcus loans and wealth management services, to Apple customers, WSJ adds.
