Uber

Digital payments are becoming a critical aspect of nearly every new service for merchants or financial institutions.

On the surface, the Uber-Venmo partnership sounds like a coup for Venmo, getting its brand into the app that defined the ride-sharing category. But the partnership is a much bigger deal for Uber.

The ride-hailing giant is the largest retailer to accept Venmo payments to date, and the move is an indication of how the platform plans to make money.

As alternative apps and fintechs make progress on mobile payments and digital finance, banks will need to turn to third parties and partnerships to stay relevant, writes Paul Wilmore, chief marketing officer of Barclays U.S. consumer business.

As the gig economy and prepaid cards draw more people into mainstream banking, the card providers are increasingly competing with one another instead of simply moving people away from cash.

Barclays is one of the top five cobranded card issuers in the U.S., but because the bank has no branch network it must use unconventional marketing approaches — and unique technological innovations — to win customers.

“We know we've said this before, but we do feel we've put this behind us now,” Joseph DePaolo said Thursday.

Driving an Uber car isn't like many other jobs, and drivers' payments and expenses are also very different. Much of those differences are built on Green Dot technology, and the bank is ready to see if its platform can work for more than just Uber.

Companies that aspire to be the Uber of their industry should take a second look at the ride-sharing market, where Grab has become a lightning rod of payments investment and innovation.

A new cobranded Uber debit card from Green Dot’s GoBank unit gives drivers 3% cash back if they choose PIN entry when filling their tanks at ExxonMobil stations, affirming the persistence of PINs in an increasingly digital payments environment.