Personal Finance

Apple Officially Announces Apple Card Credit Card

Well, the rumors were true: Apple will soon offer their own twist on a credit card. This week the Cupertino-based company — in partnership with Goldman Sachs and Mastercard — officially announced Apple Card. With an emphasis on financial health, unique perks, and of course a new level of Apple Pay integration, the new card is already turning heads.

First, Apple bills Apple Card as a “credit card built for iPhone.” This promise is met starting with the application process, which the company says can be done via the Wallet app. Once approved, cardholders will then be able to utilize their card via Apple Pay immediately. The company is also putting an emphasis on making it easy for users to view their spending across multiple categories, similar to various FinTech budgeting apps.

In terms of Apple Card’s perks, perhaps the most intriguing is Daily Cash. As the name implies, instead of cardholders needing to wait until the billing cycle ends or until a certain threshold is reached to receive cash back, users will be presented with cash back daily. These funds can then be used via Apple Pay — although they can also be used as a statement credit or sent to others via Apple Pay Cash. Cardholders will earn 2% Daily Cash for any Apple Pay purchases they make with their Apple Card, while purchases from Apple such as App Store or in-store purchases will result in 3% Daily Cash. All other Apple Card purchases will earn 1% Daily Cash.

Although the Apple Card is designed to work digitally, a physical card will be issued to customers as well. Not only is this card made of titanium but also does not bear any credit card numbers, security codes, or other information. Because of this, the company boasts “Apple Card is more secure than any other physical credit card.”

Also of note is that the Apple Card will not charge an annual fee, foreign transaction fee, or over-the-limit fees. Along those same lines, Apple says they intended to have some of the lowest interest rates in the industry and will not charge a penalty rate for missed payments. Additionally a tool built into the wallet app will allow cardholders to see how much they’ll pay in interest for the month if they pay anything less than their full balance.

Speaking on the new product, Apple’s VP of Apple Pay Jennifer Bailey said, “Apple Card builds on the tremendous success of Apple Pay and delivers new experiences only possible with the power of iPhone. Apple Card is designed to help customers lead a healthier financial life, which starts with a better understanding of their spending so they can make smarter choices with their money, transparency to help them understand how much it will cost if they want to pay over time and ways to help them pay down their balance.” Based on what’s been announced so far, it does seem like this clever convergence of finance and technology could reach that goal. Of course we’ll need to take a closer look at just what Apple has built when the Apple Card becomes available this summer.

Other Articles by Jonathan Dyer