Epitaph for Banks and Credit Card Companies

In the year 2020, it should not come as a surprise that my bank and credit card provider for the past 25 years no longer exist. No, they did not go bankrupt overnight because of yet another financial crisis. They were slowly forced into extinction over a period of five to six years and they did not even feel a tremor. Just like Kodak, Nokia, RIM and taxi cab drivers across the world, they did not see it coming.

A century of success with paper money caused by globalization forced mass exodus of people, opening up of new markets and redefined political boundaries brought about complexities associated with moving money across such boundaries. Banks and credit card companies thrived in this complexity.

The banks and credit card providers were designed to influence a “spend before you save” mentality. They innovated and introduced rewards as a way to cling onto customers. They aggregated deals with merchants to offer discounts on purchases and influence spending. Rewards were cleverly steeped into all engagement points.