Marcus by Goldman Sachs adds GM as second co-branded credit card

Marcus by Goldman Sachs announced it’s teaming up with General Motors to launch a new co-branded credit card and rewards program. This marks its second big retail partnership after issuing the Apple Card in 2019.

GM was one of the first retailers to introduce branded credit cards in the US, with its first such launch almost three decades ago. The company is now going all digital by partnering with Marcus by Goldman Sachs and Mastercard to launch its new rewards card and loyalty program.

Customers can apply online and use their card immediately after approval, as the card is available via the GM app and can be added to digital wallets. The card is also integrated into the My GM Rewards loyalty program, launched back in 2018 with more than 6 million customers.

The rewards program allows cardmembers to redeem points toward the purchase of a new Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, or Cadillac vehicle, or in-dealership GM services. As for benefits, these include 7x points for every $1 spent at GM, and 4x points for other purchases. Each point is worth a penny when redeemed. 

The existing GM card has more than 3 million card holders who will automatically be transferred to Goldman Sachs.

Goldman Sachs bought GM’s credit card portfolio for $2.5 billion in 2020 from Capital One, winning over rival Barclays. This was its second victory over the British lender after its rewards program with Apple was cut ahead of the Marcus partnership for the Apple Card. 

Both banks reportedly pitched the idea of turning cars into e-commerce portals, an idea the automaker embraced as the first major car company to allow drivers to order products and services from a car’s dashboard screens. 

GM has plans to integrate its e-commerce car capabilities with the rewards program. Enabling customers to earn and redeem points wherever they may be is “critically important” for GM, according to Julie Heisel, Director of Retail Innovation at General Motors. 

“With the launch of this new program there are over 20 integrations that are already in place, like e-commerce and Shop, Click & Drive. Integration with the apps in the head unit will be by the end of 2022, because we want this to be as seamless as possible,” she said on a media call. 

And looking forward, GM wants to continue developing its financial services for consumers. 

“Today, we have some integrations with our captive finance company, GM Financial. As we continue to develop more products and services with Marcus by Goldman Sachs, every one of these experiences will be integrated with My GM Rewards and the My GM Rewards Card,” Heisel said.

SPONSORED

Such partnerships between banks and retailers aim to help lenders expand their customer reach, while offering retailers customer retention through various loyalty programs. Marcus is also working with Walmart to offer small business loans to online sellers, and partnered with JetBlue on an installment loan product to help customers finance their travels. 

Marcus by Goldman Sachs was launched in 2016 as a consumer banking business, offering consumers and small businesses different ways to finance purchases, both directly and also by embedding its lending capabilities with other platforms. 

It started with the acquisition of the US online deposit platform of GE Capital Bank and added the personal finance management capability and customer base of Clarity Money in 2018. 

In 2019, Marcus announced one of the biggest partnerships in the fintech space when it collaborated with Apple to introduce a consumer credit card, the Apple Card. More recently, it bought BNPL provider GreenSky, giving Marcus not only its flexible payments option but also direct access to its customer base of 10,000 merchants in the home improvement space.