(American Banker) - The renewal of the e-commerce giant’s cobranded card cements an alliance between two giants of their industries — just as both companies are pushing ahead with products such as buy now/pay later loans that put pressure on traditional credit cards.
After threatening to move to other financial institutions, Amazon has decided to keep JPMorgan Chase as its credit card issuer, maintaining a two-decade relationship that can add scale to payment products that are growing in popularity with consumers, fintechs and banks.
Amazon's decision to stay with Chase for its co-branded Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature credit card avoids a messy separation and transfer to a new card issuer for millions of consumers. It also comes as banks and fintechs increasingly pursue buy now/pay later lending and other payment options that can serve as alternatives to credit cards.
"Amazon is being extremely diligent and clever in how it navigates the payments space," said Neil Smith, head of strategic partnerships and business development at Forter, a New York-based payment technology company and consultant.
By John Adams
March 31, 2022
