Apple has become a bank. With the Apple Card[1], the company may have just found its next big thing and it isn't a phone, computer, or tablet. And it certainly isn't a subscription service. By putting itself in the middle of consumer spending and finance, Apple may have just solved its growth equation.
After all, the credit card business[2] can be quite lucrative. Apple's next big[3] cash cow[4] looks like this:
Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, set up the motive:
We wanted to take the Apple Pay experience even further. We saw an opportunity to transform another fundamental method of payment. That's the credit card. We think Apple's uniquely positioned to make the most significant change in the credit card experience in 50 years.
The innovation in the Apple Card is mostly business model based. The company is taking an installed base of devices, features such as low rates and no fees and some cut of transactions built on top of Apple Pay. Goldman Sachs is the issuing bank and MasterCard provides a key payment partner to get a global base. The iPhone becomes the wallet, but the physical card will also get some takers because it's easy on the eyes.
Apple's credit card innovation is part store-branded credit meets loyalty program meets toll collector.
You combine an app experience that appears to be