ADN’co Payments Insight – November 2019

Players’ Strategy – Major League Taking Action

• UNITED STATES – Google gest ready to launch a checking account. Read more
• UNITED STATES – Facebook unveils a unified payment system. Read more
• UNITED STATES – Uber takes yet another step into the financial sector with Uber Money. Read more
• EUROPE – Wirecard further focuses on banking services, features current accounts. Read more

Some of the leading online pure players are aiming for huge volumes of data held by banks, and most of these large-scale groups already deal with customers’ personal finances. Instead of directly challenging banks, some tech giants choose to partner with these institutions. Google, for instance, teamed up with Citigroup to add checking accounts for their users starting next year. Facebook, for their part, unveiled their own unified payment system, separate from Libra. Uber is another tech leader betting on this trend with Uber Money for their car drivers.

Cards – Making Plans to Enhance Card Offers

• FRANCE – Société Générale introduces a cashback programme. Read more
• UNITED KINGDOM – AmEx’s new credit card for rewarding exercise. Read more
• INTERNATIONAL – Adyen enters the card issuing market. Read more

According to a survey by Xerfi, even if wallet offers will be making strong progress by 2022, they shouldn’t outpace payment cards as favoured payment method in France. Even so, alternative payment methods are still gaining ground. This considered, some industry players are building more projects to enhance card-linked services. Société Générale already included a contactless feature, a biometric sensor and dynamic CVxs; and they are unveiling a new cashback programme to make their card offers even more attractive.

Likewise, American Express introduces differentiating rewards and discounts for increasing card use levels, while also prompting their cardholders to improve their health and well-being, via rewarding exercise.