Branded Credit Cards are BS

Millennial magnet Apple is teaming up with banking behemoth Goldman Sachs to provide consumers with branded credit cards.

This shouldn’t come as a surprise. Being opportunistic has helped companies like Apple, Uber and Ikea survive our retail dystopia.

Like free food and timely coupons, branded credit cards are too good to be true.

They’re following the “millennial manual”, offering exclusive perks, personalized experience and a plastic platform to show off their brand allegiance to the world.

In exchange for underwhelming benefits, millennials are expected to foot a sizable annual fee, or a higher interest rate for these cards.

Instagram’s in-app payments provide a similar service, essentially trading poor payments through banks for the convenience of purchasing on the platform.

Despite household income outpacing cost of living, the average American still has a credit card balance of $6,374.

Credit cards are consistent money makers for banks, and companies like Uber, Ikea and Apple want in on the action.

We should be living in a retailer’s paradise, but we’re not because banks are undercutting the economy.

And why should they stop if we’re willing to spend?

Banks are businesses at heart, and like any other business, they need to make money somewhere from someone.

Convenience is being confused with correct, to the detriment of consumers and companies alike. And behind this financial facade, people aren’t getting the bargain they think they are.

This isn’t because banks are bad, but because their forty-year old technology is.

Their outdated technology sets them back from Square, Adyen and others who are innovating a space that has long been stale.

Banks were right to partner up with companies like Uber and Apple, who have used technology to fuel their growth and success. But they need to take it a step further.

Adopting technology like blockchain, and retiring past payment rails for good will bring banks up to speed, to the benefit of companies and consumers everywhere.

The real payment experience doesn’t lie with brand allegiance or cashless purchasing, but with a platform that isn’t pay to play.

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