The popularity of payment cards is growing rapidly. Today 70% of all online and offline purchases are paid for with them. It is noteworthy that credit cards are more often used to pay for goods and services, not only debit cards. Due to the increasing demand for payment cards, clients’ expectations grow too. They are becoming more demanding of banking products and want to get the most out of them.
Last year, a survey was conducted among Americans, in which they spoke about their preferences in payment methods. Its results showed that the majority of users open card projects in traditional banks. Despite this, the popularity of non-traditional fintech companies is rapidly growing, all because they are more flexible and can quickly adapt to modern realities. Innovative players in the credit card market offer their clients card solutions https://wallester.com/card-solutions for any usage.
Traditional bank offerings
There is tremendous competition in the credit card market right now. Despite this, traditional banks and credit unions still hold the leading position in the industry. According to statistics, more than 70% of purchases are made by credit cards issued by the world’s top ten banks. It shows that the industry is concentrated “in the hands” of common banks. But it does not mean modern players have nothing to compete for primacy.
42% of credit card holders say they own and actively use not only one but sometimes two or even more cards. And while their primary card is a credit card issued by a well-known bank, additional credit cards are often opened at innovative fintech companies. Interestingly, almost 80% of the respondents in the survey have been using their primary card for more than a year. And over 40% have been owners of the same card for more than 10 years. Despite such an impressive product use period, almost all respondents are ready to try new offers from innovative issuers if offered favorable terms and a more flexible service system.
Innovative card solutions
In recent years, we see a rapid consumer turnaround from traditional banking institutions toward innovative credit card players. Because of the worldwide pandemic, the payments industry has undergone tremendous change. Consumers are now paying more attention to alternative credit card issuers. In the U.S. alone, a quarter of holders say they use credit cards not from traditional banks but from technology companies like Venmo, Chime, etc.
When consumers were asked if they could use the cards of innovative issuers as their primary cards, more than 60% of respondents answered in the affirmative. Interestingly, a similar survey was conducted just over a year ago. At that time, there were 16% fewer affirmative answers to this question. This positive trend indicates a change in the needs of credit card holders and the rapid growth of their interest in innovation in the credit industry. Some respondents stated to change their credit card issuer to a non-standard one if they got an offer for more favorable rewards for using their services.
Apple was one of the first companies to offer cards with rewards for their use. Its Apple Card comes with a 3% cash back for every purchase on the Apple service. The company provides not only a virtual card but also a physical card. Paying for purchases using a physical carrier, you can get an additional 1% of the amount spent. But it is not only getting a cashback that provokes consumers to change their credit cards for an innovative means of payment.
The main reason the consumers have turned their attention to modern credit card issuers is their flexibility and ease of use. Much of this advantage comes from the fact that such companies use innovative platforms to issue credit cards. For example, card solutions from Wallester are implemented on an API platform with an intuitive interface.
API solutions allow you to launch card projects in the shortest possible time and do not spend time and money to develop the necessary infrastructure. API platforms work on a “plug and play” basis. Their service and integration with software products already in use in the company are as simple as possible. Businesses don’t stop at the stage of developing their own card program but implement it as quickly as possible and return to other scaling processes. The platform APIs are designed not just to issue cards but to control card usage and spending. Card program management is greatly simplified because cards can be issued, blocked, and changed. Limits can be set using one simple interface.
Benefits of Wallester card solutions
Wallester is a fully functional platform. With its help, any card project may be implemented. These can be salary projects, cards for company expenses accounting, as well as options for short-term lending. For each project, it is possible to develop an individual design using corporate symbols and colors. This increases brand recognition. And customer and employee loyalty can be improved with advanced rewards systems for using card products.
The Wallester platform is easy to integrate with the software and tools the customer already uses, so it’s great for businesses that are growing and scaling. Not only credit cards but also debit cards can be issued through it. They can be physical or virtual. To integrate the Wallester platform seamlessly, the company has created an entire API developer portal. It contains all the documentation needed for this process and provides the additional support needed to get started. Initially, the company helps with just about everything – creating accounts, issuing payment cards, managing payment rules, tagging card products, and using any other platform features that will help improve business.
The platform has nearly limitless customization possibilities. Any of its features can be configured as desired to fit the user’s preferences. Such configurability of the solution allows for reducing risks where there is a need, for example, to quickly change limits or create a new virtual employee card. The speed of decision-making is particularly important when blocking or canceling cards if they are stolen or lost.
Access to funds is provided in real-time, any transactions and in different quantities are instantaneous. Card solutions from Wallester, unlike traditional banking products, can quickly and easily adapt to new customer needs. With their help, you can significantly improve the efficiency and productivity of any business, providing the end user with a world-class card product.
To test the quality of the platform, Wallester offers its customers a private “sandbox”. In it, you can create and test payment cards. Such a test space will help in the future to quickly integrate and invent new payment ecosystems for specific card projects. The listed features of the Wallester platform indicate that modern issuers have already surpassed traditional banking institutions in terms of the number of services provided and their flexibility.
