Photo: Venmo
TECHNOLOGY
Venmo Releases Credit Card
The PayPal-owned mobile-payment service Venmo announced the release of its new credit card, which is issued by Synchrony Bank and powered by Visa. Available to users of the Venmo application who apply for a card, the new product will eventually roll out to all users of the technology throughout the United States. The card can be managed directly through the Venmo application and boasts many incentives for users.
The card offers automatic cash back on all purchases and uses an intelligent rewards system for personalized incentives based on a customer’s individual spending habits. No annual fee or foreign-transaction fees are applied to the card. Its mobile-first experience allows cardholders to manage the card and spending directly within the mobile application with real-time alerts to closely monitor transactions.
“We’re excited to introduce the Venmo credit card, giving our community a new kind of mobile-first credit card backed by Visa that only Venmo and Synchrony can provide,” said Darrell Esch, senior vice president and general manager at Venmo. “The card gives our customers the same unique Venmo experience they already know and love in an intuitive, easy-to-use card and rewards program that’s all seamlessly managed and controlled from the Venmo app.”
A unique QR code for each cardholder can be scanned through a mobile-phone camera or within the Venmo application, allowing users to send payments and divide purchases. The RFID-enabled chip facilitates tap payments, which affords options to pay that require minimum contact and fewer touch points than a chip, which must be inserted, or a card that must be swiped at the point-of-sale. Venmo’s latest offering is also secure. If the card is lost or stolen, it can be frozen from within the application. Cardholders can continue to use the virtual card while shopping online.
“We are pleased to deepen our longstanding relationship with PayPal and Venmo to bring the Venmo/Synchrony card to market,” said Dennis Bauer, senior vice president and general manager of PayPal and Venmo at Synchrony. “The Venmo credit card sets a new standard in the industry through its auto-personalized rewards program in a native app experience that we feel Venmo customers will find very appealing."
