In the latest edition of his “Power On” newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman says that Apple’s breakup with Goldman Sachs Group is now underway and the tech giant may turn to Chase Bank could replace Goldman Sachs as Apple Card partner.
He notes that the bank already handles a number of roles for Apple including:
- Storing some of the tech company’s roughly $60 billion in cash on hand.
- Serving as one of the earliest and most successful Apple Pay partners.
- Teaming up with Apple on its Ultimate Rewards program, which offers discounts on Apple devices to its banking and credit card customers.
- Serving as one of the biggest credit card partners for transactions at Apple retail outlets, online store and the App Store.
Gurman says that Chase has something else going for it: It offers credit cards that use the MasterCard network. That’s the same system that powers the Apple Card, meaning there’d be no need to switch to the Visa or American Express platforms.
“Apple would also probably be keen to move its Apple Cash debit card over to Chase,” he writes. “That service is currently backed by Green Dot Bank, a company that’s had struggles of its own — along with reliability issues. Chase already has a strong network of debit cards that the Apple Cash card could fit into, offering customers perks like ATM access.”
However, Gurman says that the one component of Apple’s financial services portfolio that wouldn’t be a fit for Chase is its savings account. That product is touted as a high-yield account, with an annual rate of 4.15%.
“Unlike Goldman and some other banks, Chase only offers peanuts when it comes to interest for savings accounts,” according to Gurman. “So, assuming Chase won’t get into high-yield accounts to secure a deal with Apple, there will need to be another solution for that product. Thankfully, there’s a pretty clear one: The savings account deposits could be sold and split up among banks willing to offer the same interest rates to Apple. And users of the accounts probably wouldn’t care or even notice, as long as they’re able to access their cash.”
This info from Gurman is from the free edition of “Power On”. If you like it, consider subscribing to Bloomberg.com—you’ll receive the newsletter earlier and get exclusive access to a Q&A section.
Article provided with permission from AppleWorld.Today