The Familiarity of Cards and the Opportunity of AI
There is a lot going on in the payments ecosystem, and the packed program and busy event halls were evidence of that at both MoneyLive and CPI Europe Summit in London this week. From banks to fintechs, high street brands to niche players, there was a keen appetite to gain insights from all aspects of the industry, and the role of cards was one of the topics that came up for discussion again and again.
Payment Card Conversations
While some of the conversations focused on customer behaviours and the rise of virtual cards, wearables, A2A (Account to Account), and instant payments, there was also a clear narrative about physical cards being the mainstream in B2C consumer cards and B2B commercial/corporate cards.
Some of this conversation revolved around the continuing appeal of physical cards, with one UK Tier1 bank revealing that they still issue more than 10 million cards each year because it is a proven and trusted payment method over many decades. Cards offer universal acceptance along with security and peace of mind, especially when travelling, for ATM Cash withdrawals, offline transaction environments (such as on planes, and in remote locations, etc), pre-authorizations and refunds, offline use, and in general reliability, which is not available from other payment methods.
Just as compelling were the discussions about the untapped opportunities with payment cards, and here there were three clear stories: rewards, corporate travel, and brand equity.
Rewards
When it comes to rewards and cash back payment card programs, the UK and Europe lag behind the USA, where the cash back program market is dynamic and competitive. But there was serious interest at these events in how UK and European banks and fintechs can leverage reward and cashback card programs to gain top-of-wallet status, win customers, and drive loyalty.
With banks and fintechs competing in a busy payments landscape, and new entrants still disrupting the market, offering rewards and making them physical with card issuance looks set to be a key differentiator.
Travel
Travel and expenses (T&E) corporate cards were singled out as another growth area for payment cards, with a focus on the possibilities for a smoother customer experience and accurate real-time expenses management through the integration of agentic AI. For example, autonomous AI agents can be used to assess and authorise bookings, make changes to credit limits based on purchasing trends and needs, and implement fraud detection. T&E card programs embedded with AI capability and data analytics improve the front-end experience for executives, while reducing back-end management for their employer.
SME Banking new Brands
While the word from the investment community – both VCs and traditional banks – was that investment in fintech start-ups is slowing down and becoming more focused on models that bring something fresh and differentiated to the fintech landscape, the rise of SME banking is a clear UK trend.
Tier 2 and 3 banks tailoring card programs for SMEs presents an exciting opportunity for payment card providers – not only because of the range of products we can offer across savings, current, and pre-payment accounts etc., but also because of the appetite for distinctive physical cards in this market segment. With familiar high street retail brands entering this market, physical cards deliver a connection between bricks-and-mortar presence and brand experience in a way that is trusted and familiar.
All About AI
AI is rapidly becoming one of the most transformative technologies in the payment industry. It is used across the entire payments value chain – from fraud detection to customer service to transaction optimization. This reflects the work AUSTRIACARD HOLDINGS has been doing in partnership with @Dell Technologies to develop our GaiaB™ AI platform.
There was a huge presence from agentic AI specialists and much talk about the role of AI in managing layers of customer support automation, credit decisioning and lending, AML and transaction monitoring . From chatbots to call centers, agentic AI looks set to transform the way banks and fintechs manage customer relationships and customer data, with the emerging possibilities for services and card programs driven by data analytics.
More to Know, More to Share
After a day and a half at each of these two shows, there was so much to take on board, but there is also lots for us to share with customers and partners. The next event on the calendar is Pay360 at London’s Excel, where we will be exhibiting at Stand 134 – our team will see you there 25-26 March!
