From Beast Industries acquiring Step Financial to Visa cardholders getting access to World Cup tickets, Andrew Davidson breaks down the latest news in the financial services industry. He also discusses UK Banks meeting to discuss alternative payment networks, Bank of America announcing the launch of BofA Rewards, and Gap launching Encore.
Want to discover more of Andrew’s cutting-edge insights on financial products, marketing strategies, and industry innovations? Follow him on LinkedIn, or listen to him as the host of Mintel’s Little Conversation podcast.
Here are the 5 things you need to know:
1. Beast Industries Acquires Step Financial
Beast Industries (MrBeast) has acquired Step Financial to combine “the most subscribed YouTube channel in the world with 450 million followers” with the fast-growing fintech focused on financial health.
Beast Industries is an entertainment, consumer products, and CPG company founded and led by YouTube creator, entrepreneur, and philanthropist Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast.
Step was founded by financial industry veterans CJ MacDonald and Alexey Kalinichenko and has some notable high-profile investors, including 4-time NBA Champion Stephen Curry, social media star Charli D’Amelio, Justin Timberlake, Will Smith, and The Chainsmokers.
💡 Amplification AND alignment
- Creator-scale amplification. Talk about rocket fuel! Step is already fast-growing with now seven million primarily Gen Z customers. This acquisition will bring reach that can drive awareness and adoption among teens and young adults at a pace traditional financial institutions can’t match. While many of MrBeast’s 450M+ subscribers are global and young, his audience in the U.S. is still likely at Super Bowl scale. (An estimated 125.6 million viewers watched Super Bowl LX, according to Nielsen)
- Alignment adds the force multiplier. I interviewed Step founder CJ MacDonald last year on the Mintel Little Conversation podcast, where he spoke about Step’s purpose: improving the financial future of the next generation. That aligns directly with how MrBeast framed the acquisition on X: “I want to give millions of young people the financial foundation I never had.” With values in sync, Step can scale to new heights.
2. Visa Cardholders Get Access to World Cup Tickets (Or Not)
Is this my lucky credit card?
I just got tickets to the World Cup thanks to my Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards Visa card. This lucky card could be the key to World Cup glory…at which point I will frame it! 🏆
The window for purchasing tickets opened up for select Visa cardholders on Feb 10 and ran through Feb 24 or until supplies ran out. Visa issuers treated their ticket allocations differently:
- Bank of America (official bank sponsor of the World Cup) restricted it to NEW cardholders who applied for a cash back card during a promo period.
- Chase restricted it to its Sapphire cardholders.
- Capital One restricted it to Venture X cardholders and entered the general Visa early access period that started on Feb 12.
- Wells Fargo opened it up to ALL existing cardholders.
💡The power of emotion in marketing
- Quota system? Why could Wells Fargo let everyone in while others placed restrictions? My best guess: allocation pressure. If Visa gave each large issuer a similar ticket allotment, then each bank was trying to manage demand differently based on portfolio size. Anecdotal feedback was that Capital One, Chase and Wells customers had a poor experience attempting to purchase tickets, so I don’t know whether my success with BofA was pure luck or down to its exclusive approach.
- Emotional connection. This is a reminder of the power of emotion in card marketing. A once‑in‑a‑lifetime experience creates attachment that outlasts the transaction. I did not need another card, but the chance at World Cup tickets nudged me to apply, and now I am more inclined to keep it. BofA explicitly packaged this as a limited‑time new‑applicant benefit tied to its Official Bank status. If England or the USA win, I might just switch my banking relationship too!
- Credit card drive. Bank of America has signaled that it is gearing up for a significant push in credit cards this year by investing more in marketing, digital enhancements and rewards in order to increase card penetration among clients and drive new business growth. The World Cup campaign is the perfect example of that renewed intent. Watch out for Bank of America this year.
3. UK Banks Meet to Discuss Alternative Payment Network
UK banks are now exploring a sovereign backup to Visa and Mastercard.
About 95% of UK card payments run on these two US‑owned networks, which raises a simple but uncomfortable question: What happens if access becomes a geopolitical bargaining chip?
We have already seen how fragile the system can become when geopolitics intervenes. When sanctions hit Russia, Visa and Mastercard suspended operations, disrupting a large share of transactions and accelerating the shift toward Russia’s Mir network.
💡Geopolitics and card networks
- Geopolitical risk mitigation in payments. Governments are increasingly focused on payment sovereignty because global networks are now part of broader economic leverage. The US administration has shown a willingness to use economic tools more aggressively and international payment rails sit directly in that toolbox. As a result, UK and EU policymakers are exploring domestic alternatives not to replace global networks but to ensure the economy continues to function if access is restricted. Card marketers are no longer immune to geopolitics and should build this into their thinking.
- Going backwards? One UK executive warned that losing access to Visa and Mastercard could “send us back to the 1950s” and that’s true. Global acceptance is easy to overlook until you need it. During the communications blackout and curfew in Bangladesh in 2024, I had no contact with my family. A single international Apple Card transaction showed me they were safe and buying essentials on the Mastercard network. That is what global acceptance looks like in practice. If countries lose access to international rails, consumers traveling or living abroad could face a sudden step backward in their ability to function day-to-day. We take this functionality for granted. Global acceptance will become even more important as part of the value proposition.
4. Bank of America Announces the Launch of BofA Rewards
Bank of America is replacing Preferred Rewards with BofA Rewards, a new no-fee loyalty program “for every client, no matter where they are on their financial journey.”
Preferred Rewards, long viewed as the industry standard in relationship rewards, has more than 11 million members. Now, 30 million+ checking clients will be eligible to join the expanded program.
Key changes:
- Eligibility expands: Previously, you needed $20k to join; now, any personal checking client can enroll.
- Tiers reorganized: The big one is that middle tiers are being downgraded while premium tiers are being upgraded with expanded access to lifestyle benefits.
- Programs unified: Previously separate programs are being unified under one umbrella to provide rewards at “every life stage.”
💡Mass market loyalty!
- Mass market loyalty is the headline. I’ve been speaking about “What’s Next for the 90%” and the opportunities for the mass market with product and marketing teams across the country and if you needed a proof point then this is it! Opening loyalty to any checking client turns it into an entry point for millions. Bank of America has shifted from a balance‑gated program to a broad engagement platform designed for everyday usage and deeper relationships.
- This sets the stage for a new wave of credit cards. Bank leaders have flagged increased investment in cards across new product development, co‑brand partnerships, marketing and digital. The bank wants both new customers and to push existing customer card penetration from 71% to 80%. The loyalty redesign looks like the foundation for the next portfolio refresh. BofA is building a premium ecosystem at the top while opening the doors at the bottom.
- A value-based marketing narrative is next. Bank of America is now quantifying annual value, where members can receive $150 to $4,000 per year depending on tier and engagement. That is a clear signal for how both loyalty and future cards will be marketed: a measurable ROI story, not just a perks list, echoing similar strategies from the likes of Amex and Chase but with Bank of America’s focus on expanding customer relationships.
5. Gap Launches Encore
Gap has relaunched its loyalty ecosystem spanning 40 million+ active members with the debut of Encore and a completely redesigned Encore Mastercard issued by Barclays.
“Encore brings together access, style and savings through moments inspired by fashion and entertainment…” Or what Gap describes as fashiontainment.
- Designed as “the best card for apparel shopping”
- 20% off first purchase
- 5X points at Gap brands
- 3X points at retail apparel brands across the category (yes, the competition)🤯
- 1X points everywhere else
- All Access tier to unlock priority experiences/early access benefits
- Access to the Encore Market, a NEW member marketplace offering exclusive drops, limited-run products, signed pieces, and cultural experiences
- Free shipping on online orders of $35 or more
- No annual fee
Source: Gap
💡One of the most ambitious moves in retail loyalty in years
- Retail loyalty becomes fashiontainment. Gap is reframing retail loyalty around fashion, entertainment, and culture. Encore integrates early access, exclusive drops, storytelling, and experiences supported by new partnerships with Disney, NBCUniversal, and AMC Theatres. This takes the meaning of a co-brand card into new territory. The launch follows the creation of a Chief Entertainment Officer to build out the fashiontainment platform. This is one of the most ambitious moves in retail loyalty in years and creates a huge opportunity to expand the Encore Mastercard portfolio.
- The emergence of category co-brand cards. Gap wants to own the apparel category, not just its own brands. The Encore Mastercard earns 3X at other apparel retailers, even when consumers are shopping competitors. Gap knows apparel spend is spread across multiple brands and is choosing to participate in that spend rather than fight it. This mirrors what we first saw with the Crate & Barrel Imprint-backed card, which rewards purchases at home retailers outside its own portfolio. What was once novel is now a trend. A category-wide earning structure is officially emerging as the next evolution of co-brand cards. What other categories would be a good fit for this approach? Beauty? Sporting goods? Pet care?
