Apple and Goldman Sachs to part ways on Apple Card, no successor named

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
Posted:
in General Discussion edited November 2023

Goldman Sachs is expected to stop issuing the Apple Card in early 2025, as the companies seek other financial institutions to back the card and savings account.

Apple Card
Apple Card



Apple's consumer-focused credit card, called the Apple Card, has been seen as a success for Apple, but not for Goldman Sachs. After months of reports about a disgruntled Goldman Sachs, it seems the companies are ready to part ways.

According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, Apple sent a proposal to Goldman Sachs to exit their contract in 12 to 15 months. The exit would cover their entire partnership, including Apple Card and Apple Savings.

There isn't any information about a possible new partner beyond speculation. Goldman Sachs has allegedly held discussions with American Express to take over Apple Card, and Synchrony Financial has also apparently cited interest in taking over.

The report says the partnership has had issues from the start. Apple ran ads saying that Apple Card wasn't from a bank, the company insisted on customers getting their bill at the start of each month, and regulatory scrutiny occurred as a result of the partnership.

It's still early days as the proposal hasn't even been approved. Apple Card and Apple Savings customers should carry on as usual until Apple makes an official announcement.

There isn't any word on how this might affect Apple Card holders, rates, fees, or other operations surrounding the credit card. Apple will likely fight to retain the same level of control it exerted with Goldman Sachs, which seems to have led to this situation in the first place.

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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 79
    AppleishAppleish Posts: 692member
    Well, Goldman Sachs is a legalized crime syndicate, so do better Apple...
    SkepticalAlex_Vrezwitstokyojimuwatto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 79
    geomac25geomac25 Posts: 13member
    It won’t be easy to replace GS, without changes in the structure of the relationship between Apple, and, the Lending Company. Apple , will have to be more flexible….
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 3 of 79
    iOS_Guy80iOS_Guy80 Posts: 814member
    This is very unfortunate. The whole credit card, billing, payment, reward program and savings account program has been a very positive experience. Hopefully Apple can find a worthy partner to carry on and even improve this program.
    darbus69linkmantomkarlmacguiwatto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 79
    sirlance99sirlance99 Posts: 1,293member
    No way Apple gets the demands they want this time. 
    darbus69byronlwilliamlondon
  • Reply 5 of 79
    AlreschaAlrescha Posts: 23member
    Apple Card (and Apple Savings) have been nothing but a success for me as a consumer.  I hope that however it shakes out, the experience continues to outperform the competition.
    InspiredCodeSpitbathdarbus69linkmantomkarlApplejacsbyronlwatto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 79
    InspiredCodeInspiredCode Posts: 403member
    I’m sure some of the prior issues could be solved. For instance their reps get overwhelmed at the end of the month when everyone’s cards become due. They should be able to solve that with a no-fee grace period to resolve any issues within a few weeks of the due date. 
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 7 of 79
    michaelx74michaelx74 Posts: 11member
    Apple:  Just buy a/the bank.
    9secondkox2darbus69Applejacsentropysblastdoorwatto_cobra
  • Reply 8 of 79
    22july201322july2013 Posts: 3,573member
    For those of us outside the USA who have been waiting for 4+ years for this service, with no hint of it arriving in our countries, we kinda hope the service will die in the USA. Apple needs to think worldwide, and not provide services to Americans only. How many other Apple services are available in the US only?
    Alex_Vxyzzy01byronlralphieappleinsideruserwatto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 79
    linkmanlinkman Posts: 1,035member
    Apple Card has been a big hit with me and the wife. It's been a much more pleasant experience than using the few other credit cards during our lifetime. I hope Apple is able to find a good successor and provide a similar experience with that replacement.
    Alex_Vmacguibyronlwatto_cobra
  • Reply 10 of 79
    linkmanlinkman Posts: 1,035member
    22july2013 said:
    For those of us outside the USA who have been waiting for 4+ years for this service, with no hint of it arriving in our countries, we kinda hope the service will die in the USA. Apple needs to think worldwide, and not provide services to Americans only. How many other Apple services are available in the US only?
    Doing this for every country would be like doing this 200x. The financial sector typically has huge administrative and regulatory burdens. It's probably not worth them touching it except for the largest GDP countries. Considering how most news reports indicate Goldman Sachs has lost big money on this venture it is likely any other bank (and Apple) is leery of testing the waters in another country.
    rezwitstedcranmorebeowulfschmidtbyronlwatto_cobra
  • Reply 11 of 79
    ktappektappe Posts: 824member
    I completely understand G.S. not wanting every bill to be due on the 1st of the month. Imagine you're a retailer and all your customers come in on the 1st, leaving you with no customers days 2-30.  It's unreasonable of Apple to have G.S. have to handle an onslaught of bills just one day of the month and not be willing to spread them out.  As an Apple Card customer, I'd be fine having mine not be on the 1st, but Apple has never bothered to ask. 
    rezwitswilliamlondonbyronlappleinsideruserwatto_cobra
  • Reply 12 of 79
    ktappektappe Posts: 824member
    22july2013 said:
    For those of us outside the USA who have been waiting for 4+ years for this service, with no hint of it arriving in our countries, we kinda hope the service will die in the USA. Apple needs to think worldwide, and not provide services to Americans only. How many other Apple services are available in the US only?
    Why do you think Apple would be capable of rolling out such a complex financial offering worldwide all at once? Every single product Apple brings to market is rolled out in the U.S. first. Then, when the bugs are worked out and the product is a success, it gets spread wider. Apple Card is not currently a success, thus this story. 


    williamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 13 of 79
    dee_deedee_dee Posts: 112member
    ktappe said:
    I completely understand G.S. not wanting every bill to be due on the 1st of the month. Imagine you're a retailer and all your customers come in on the 1st, leaving you with no customers days 2-30.  It's unreasonable of Apple to have G.S. have to handle an onslaught of bills just one day of the month and not be willing to spread them out.  As an Apple Card customer, I'd be fine having mine not be on the 1st, but Apple has never bothered to ask. 
    Then why did they sign the agreement? Was Apple holding a gun to their head?  Apple Card is designed to help people pay off their debt, having a bill due on the 1st is easy to remember. 
    blastdoorwilliamlondonbyronlwatto_cobra
  • Reply 14 of 79
    doggonedoggone Posts: 381member
    I have definitely preferred the experience with the AppleCard vs. the other card I have.  The phone app is great.  The only downside is not being able to link the data to a financial app.
    Does it make sense for Apple to take over the whole shebang?  Apple already get most of the profit from the card use and it may be hard to get another CC company to honor the same deal.  This would widen their services portfolio and allow them to control the experience completely.
    Synchrony does sound like a good idea.  Their website and service is very poor.
    byronlwatto_cobra
  • Reply 15 of 79
    dope_ahminedope_ahmine Posts: 253member
    geomac25 said:
    It won’t be easy to replace GS, without changes in the structure of the relationship between Apple, and, the Lending Company. Apple , will have to be more flexible….
    Banks like GS are dinosaurs. They need to learn how to adapt and innovate or die.
     🦕 
    rezwitsappleinsideruserwatto_cobra
  • Reply 16 of 79
    dewmedewme Posts: 5,376member
    What happened with Apple’s relationship with Barclays?  I seem to remember using Barclays relationship with Apple to get interest free financing to purchase a couple of my earlier Macs and possibly iPads. 

    Perhaps partnering with a non-US based bank may make it easier to roll out support for Apple Card more globally. 

    Ultimately, shouldn’t we expect that Apple Card would be supported by multiple partners, similar to Mastercard and Visa?
    byronlwatto_cobra
  • Reply 17 of 79
    XedXed Posts: 2,575member
    22july2013 said:
    For those of us outside the USA who have been waiting for 4+ years for this service, with no hint of it arriving in our countries, we kinda hope the service will die in the USA. Apple needs to think worldwide, and not provide services to Americans only. How many other Apple services are available in the US only?
    Which worldwide issuing bank works with every single country in the world?
    beowulfschmidtwilliamlondonwatto_cobra
  • Reply 18 of 79
    mpantonempantone Posts: 2,040member
    dewme said:
    What happened with Apple’s relationship with Barclays?  I seem to remember using Barclays relationship with Apple to get interest free financing to purchase a couple of my earlier Macs and possibly iPads. 

    Perhaps partnering with a non-US based bank may make it easier to roll out support for Apple Card more globally. 

    Ultimately, shouldn’t we expect that Apple Card would be supported by multiple partners, similar to Mastercard and Visa?
    You have made a common error by someone not familiar with the basics of the consumer credit card industry.

    Mastercard and Visa aren't credit cards: they are payment networks. American Express is both a credit card company and a payment network.

    Technically, the Apple Card is a Mastercard issued by Goldman Sachs USA, NA. It says so in the fine print of the service agreement that any Apple Cardholder accepted (by clicking "Accept"). In that way, it's similar to a VentureOne Mastercard issued by CapitalOne.

    Barclays Bank would be the issuing bank. It's almost certain that Apple had discussions with Barclays Bank about the Apple Card (before it debuted) before Apple selected Goldman Sachs as a partner.

    Apple would have to partner with banks from other countries to service customers in those areas. But those banks have to have a business in the country and follow the banking regulations of that country as well. It's not like an random American can apply for a JCB card (a Japanese card) or a UK card.

    To have American cardholders, Apple needs to find a bank located in the USA (which would be subject to US consumer banking laws, not those of the UK, Japan, Nigeria, wherever.
    gatorguydewmewatto_cobra
  • Reply 19 of 79
    mpantonempantone Posts: 2,040member
    Apple:  Just buy a/the bank.
    Nope.

    Consumer banking is one of the most heavily regulated industries. Apple has zero interest becoming a bank. If this weren't the case, Apple would have started a bank a long time ago (before they partnered with Barclay Bank for the Apple Card predecessor), decades ago.

    This is also why many companies have divested their consumer loan divisions. And with each passing year, there are more banking regulations, not less.

    Apple doesn't want consumer debt as a liability.

    And as it turns out, neither does Goldman Sachs.

     :D 
    edited November 2023 watto_cobra
  • Reply 20 of 79
    ApplejacsApplejacs Posts: 35member
    As one of the many “deadbeat” customers (as GS refers to those of us that pay our entire outstanding balance in full every month) I’m watching this closely. There needs to be continuity of what has so far been a higher quality experience than the majority of CC servicers out there.
    I don’t see AMEX taking this on, not enough $$$$ in it for them, unless they add significant fees into the equation. AMEX won’t make the Apple Card experience better than it is, just more expensive, for customers as well as vendors that one day are able to accept the AC and then after the transition to AMEX would not be able to because of AMEX and their approach, something that won’t change just because it’s the Apple Card. There’s a reason that more businesses accept VISA and MASTERCARD than AMEX. 
    As for AMEX and Apple Savings??
    But, as noted above, adapt and innovate or die. I’ve got my bowl of popcorn ready.
    watto_cobra
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