Who Will Win? Visa and Amex Battle Over Apple Card Partnership

Visa is making a significant play to establish itself as the new payment network for the Apple Card, reportedly offering Apple $100 million to replace Mastercard, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Currently, the Apple Card is linked to the Mastercard network, but a significant transition is imminent as Apple looks to end its collaboration with Goldman Sachs, the current issuing bank. This has sparked intense competition among major financial institutions, with Visa, American Express, and Mastercard all competing for this valuable contract. While Visa is making a substantial financial offer, American Express is also in the running, and Mastercard is working diligently to maintain its position.

Apple’s top priority is to secure a new payment network before selecting a new issuing bank to replace Goldman Sachs for the Apple Card. Ongoing discussions are taking place with JPMorgan Chase and Synchrony Financial, while American Express is also striving to provide both issuing and network services.

Goldman Sachs and Apple have collaborated on the ‌Apple Card‌ since its debut in 2019 and have also partnered for the high-yield Apple Savings account. However, Apple has expressed dissatisfaction with Goldman Sachs due to customer service problems, particularly long wait times for resolving disputes related to ‌Apple Card‌ transactions and withdrawals from the savings account.

In response to numerous customer complaints, the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau initiated an investigation into Goldman Sachs, which has created friction between the two companies, prompting both to seek an end to their partnership.

In the US, more than 12 million people use the Apple Card, and their balances total about $20 billion.