Loyalty and rewards

While the battle for the consumer’s coffee or tea beverage, both hot and cold, is increasingly moving in a mobile direction, the challenge remains as to whether Dunkin’s recent moves are enough for it to succeed against Starbucks.

To expand its Asia Pacific regional reward redemption program, Pay with Points, Citi announced that it is enabling credit cardholders to spend their rewards points and miles to pay for a Spotify premium account.

When engaging in an increasingly competitive credit card rewards and benefits market, issuers have to make sure their programs and pitches to consumers are as simple as possible. But that's hard to do when perks range from points and rewards to the very materials used to build the cards.

Air Canada and its banking partners sweetened their bid for Aeroplan, winning over Aimia’s board and an activist shareholder that was seeking a higher price.

Cardlytics has added Wells Fargo to the list of banks using its card-linked offers platform after a successful pilot, joining JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America, the latter of which has leaned on Cardlytics’ marketing service since 2012. Notably, these rivals aren’t demanding exclusivity.

Tailoring company objectives to customers’ changing expectations is no longer a choice. Customer loyalty programs are not just the source of bringing repeated business but also the determinant of the future key players across all industries, writes Donika Kraeva, Communications Manager at Dentacoin Foundation, Netherlands.

London-based fintech Flux is leveraging open banking and PSD2 to work with U.K. banks and retailers to give their customers paperless receipts, digital loyalty stamps and digital cashback offers.

Visa has partnered with U.S.-based fintech novae to launch an omnichannel digital rewards platform for Visa card-issuing banks in Latin America and the Caribbean. The collaboration with San Francisco-based Novae is an example of the card network's open approach to fintech.

In its push to compete more directly with Amazon, Walmart has partnered with American Express, enabling its customers to earn and burn Amex’s Membership Rewards points for e-commerce purchases on Walmart.com.

American Express' blockchain patent application isn't just about payments: It could also radically change how card-based merchant offers are made and allow them to become much more targeted.

Canadian cardholders are holding back from applying for travel rewards-linked credit cards while they wait for the fallout from Air Canada’s decision to withdraw from the Aeroplan coalition loyalty scheme.

As Amazon Prime Day kicks off, credit unions are looking for ways to entice members to use the CU's card for purchases.

If it seems there's a little bit of Disney magic in Carnival Cruise Lines' Ocean Medallion, it's because the executive overseeing the Carnival project cut his teeth on the Disney Magic Band.

Price competition on deposits may finally force the largest banks to pay up, and consumers’ aggressive use of rewards and promotional rates is weighing on card income. And then there are those tariff fights that could hurt global clients.

The Prime Day event is also a chance for Amazon to showcase a new range of devices and payment options — and to sell those devices at a discount to get them into more people's homes.

Barclays has introduced an SMB credit card with a very targeted perk: It extends the interest-free credit periods up to 116 days for payments made at popular trade retailers Travis Perkins and Toolstation.

Malaysian consumers may use GrabPay Credits to pay for GrabFood, rides and any participating merchants, by tapping the GrabPay icon, selecting pay, and scanning the merchant’s QR code.

Wells Fargo & Co. is finally going after the young and points-hungry by boosting rewards on one of its premium cards.

In the evolution of mobile wallets, many companies have toyed with the idea that rewards would be a key driver for adoption. Others insist the improvements in speed and convenience are compelling enough on their own. Apple has parlayed both concepts into its promotions.

Longtime Starbucks boss Howard Schultz was so invested in the company's mobile payments strategy that he once stepped down from his day-to-day duties to focus his full attention on the tech initiative. Without his involvement, will Starbucks lose its edge in fintech?