Apple has been on the mission to make its payment platform, a one stop all. However, the iPhone maker has not received the required support from the US banks. The banks, according to Mint, do not agree to integrate the view account balance feature in Apple Pay.
The banks reportedly do not wish to cede the entire customer banking experience to Apple, leaving them to be mere financial institutions working behind-the-scenes. Nonetheless, Goldman Sachs – the relative newcomer in consumer banking – has emerged as a partner to the iPhone maker.
A high-yield savings account is on the way
Apple and Goldman Sachs partnered to release the Apple Card, which is a credit card, a few years ago. Since then, the relationship between the two has only grown and it has been reported that the investment firm is working on a Apple cardholders exclusive “high-yield” savings account.
“There’s absolutely an opportunity to reshape how people interact with financial institutions,” says Bob O’Donnell, president of TECHnalysis Research (a market-research firm). “Everything is done on the phone, so why wouldn’t the financial management piece also happen on the phone?”
Goldman Sachs has not been able to fully develop a consumer facing banking solution. As a result, the investment firm has reportedly decided to build banking services which support companies, such as Apple, offering financial services. The investment firm’s consumer banking business has not yet turned any profit, since making an entrance into the consumer finance sector in 2015.
“It’s driving loyalty and engagement with the iPhone and maybe the iPad—it’s about the Apple ecosystem,” says Ron Shevlin, chief research officer of Cornerstone Advisors.
Apple has been focusing more on building services which bind its customers with subscription plans. As a result, the company is focusing on leveraging the large customer base to build a payments solution. Further, it has been reported that the iPhone maker is exploring the idea of building a “buy now, pay later” solution.
