BBVA Open Platform powers Catch’s new banking services
- This tie up exemplifies a growing number of Banking as a Service implementations.
- BBVA's Open Platform is looking to do more than just power challenger banks.
BBVA Open Platform and Catch announced today that they are working together to deliver banking and payments services for the contingent workforce, which represents nearly 40 percent of the US workforce, or 57 million workers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
What's happening: Catch provides taxes, retirement, health insurance to freelancers, contractors, people working in the gig economy, part-time, and other non-traditional workers.
- Banking as a Service: By working with BBVA Open Platform, Catch is now able to offer its users banking and payments services under the Catch brand. Workers don't have to piece together a banking provider with a benefits provider -- they get the best of both through this type of BaaS integration.
- APIs: The Catch personal benefits platform for the contingent workforce is offering its Tax Withholding and Time Off saving products using BBVA Open Platform’s white label banking and payments APIs.
“Open Platform’s relationship with Catch is a great example of how white label banking and payments APIs are becoming crucial tools to deliver better customer experiences outside of traditional fintech applications such as neobanks,” said Abhishek Gupta, Head of BBVA Open Platform.
Tearsheet's Take: BBVA's work with Catch is a good example of Banking as a Service powering more nuanced use cases rather than just launching a full-blown challenger bank.
- Flexible and collaborative: In Tearsheet's Banking as a Service Buyers Guide, BBVA's BaaS offering is described as a collaborative platform, one that gives clients some flexibility to design creative solutions. The company appears generally interested in collaborating with clients on their specific needs.
- Out of the chute: BaaS firms have pretty full pipelines, so expect a lot more of these types of launches from apps looking to introduce financial services to their audiences.
- Who is powering who: BaaS is still early in its maturation cycle. There are a handful of providers servicing a growing number of companies launching financial products. To see the moves in the industry, see Tearsheet's coverage of which BaaS providers are powering the top apps (for Outlier members).