3 ms·

Goldman Sachs regrets Apple Card, and is trying to escape the deal

31 points by my12parsecs 3y ago

achow 3y ago
The source WSJ article on which this piece is based on.. Goldman Sachs Wants Out of Consumer Lending. Employees Say It Can’t Happen Fast Enough. https://archive.is/rmyd6 https://archive.is/rmyd6
wilg 3y ago
Neither this or the WSJ article really say much about why? Just this: > Privately, some Goldman executives blame Apple. Most card programs send out cardholders’ bills on a rolling basis throughout the month. Apple cardholders get their bill at the beginning of each month. That means Goldman customer-service employees get flooded early every month, making it hard for them to keep up. ...which seems pretty silly.
- achow 3y ago
  > That means Goldman customer-service employees get flooded early every month, making it hard for them to keep up. This indicates few things: - How inflexible Apple is in terms of dealing with partners (we already have sense of that with various App Store financial policies, ex. in-app purchases). - Above specific call-centre example means high cost of operations. To field that many calls at one go, Goldman has to invest in large operations, which at other times would remain under utilised. Why should GS do that which is already touching $1B+ in losses. - Apple management cannot be bothered with any other operational details outside of their familiar terrain (supply-chain etc).
  - deleted 3y ago
    [deleted]
  - myfavoritetings 3y ago
    I don't think this really says anything about Apple like you claim. The reality is Apple and GS made a deal and GS may have got the short end of the stick. That's their fault for making the deal that way.
jquast 3y ago
I received an email that my credit limit would be reduced on an Apple Card unless I called customer support. I haven’t seen that since 2008, I called, and said to the support person that GS must be in a lot of trouble to resort to this, she replied plainly, “No comment”
ChrisArchitect 3y ago
[Dupe] Lots of recent discussion here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37901059 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37901059
rabbits_2002 3y ago
I don’t see a point in using an Apple card. The cash back benefits don’t seem very good and theres no points system.
- mapmap 3y ago
  The cash back is 2% anywhere when you use Apple Pay. That’s pretty much the gold standard. Additionally, you get the cash back almost immediately. No points system is good in my opinion.
- syspec 3y ago
  Honestly, it's just really convenient. The way the information is displayed and presented. For example, I had what I thought was a weird charge on the card last month. Immediately I thought I was being defrauded, however I clicked on the merchant name on the list of transactions and I noticed the same charge 2 years in a row, and it turned out to be for fantasy football thing I forgot to cancel. Need to dispute a charge? Just click on the charge and click dispute (or something), you're taken to a Messages exchange colored gray to differentiate, where you interact with the rep. No phone call necessary. Is that difficult for other card providers to implement? Nope. Do they make it as simple as Apple does to see your information? Nope If you have the Health app, using an Apple Card is kinda like that in the wallet app. Tons of your own information readily available and presented well.

31 points by my12parsecs 3y ago

The source WSJ article on which this piece is based on.. Goldman Sachs Wants Out of Consumer Lending. Employees Say It Can’t Happen Fast Enough. https://archive.is/rmyd6 https://archive.is/rmyd6

wilg 3y ago

Neither this or the WSJ article really say much about why? Just this: > Privately, some Goldman executives blame Apple. Most card programs send out cardholders’ bills on a rolling basis throughout the month. Apple cardholders get their bill at the beginning of each month. That means Goldman customer-service employees get flooded early every month, making it hard for them to keep up. ...which seems pretty silly.

achow 3y ago
> That means Goldman customer-service employees get flooded early every month, making it hard for them to keep up. This indicates few things: - How inflexible Apple is in terms of dealing with partners (we already have sense of that with various App Store financial policies, ex. in-app purchases). - Above specific call-centre example means high cost of operations. To field that many calls at one go, Goldman has to invest in large operations, which at other times would remain under utilised. Why should GS do that which is already touching $1B+ in losses. - Apple management cannot be bothered with any other operational details outside of their familiar terrain (supply-chain etc).
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- myfavoritetings 3y ago
  I don't think this really says anything about Apple like you claim. The reality is Apple and GS made a deal and GS may have got the short end of the stick. That's their fault for making the deal that way.

jquast 3y ago

I received an email that my credit limit would be reduced on an Apple Card unless I called customer support. I haven’t seen that since 2008, I called, and said to the support person that GS must be in a lot of trouble to resort to this, she replied plainly, “No comment”

ChrisArchitect 3y ago

[Dupe] Lots of recent discussion here: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37901059 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37901059

rabbits_2002 3y ago

I don’t see a point in using an Apple card. The cash back benefits don’t seem very good and theres no points system.

mapmap 3y ago
The cash back is 2% anywhere when you use Apple Pay. That’s pretty much the gold standard. Additionally, you get the cash back almost immediately. No points system is good in my opinion.
syspec 3y ago
Honestly, it's just really convenient. The way the information is displayed and presented. For example, I had what I thought was a weird charge on the card last month. Immediately I thought I was being defrauded, however I clicked on the merchant name on the list of transactions and I noticed the same charge 2 years in a row, and it turned out to be for fantasy football thing I forgot to cancel. Need to dispute a charge? Just click on the charge and click dispute (or something), you're taken to a Messages exchange colored gray to differentiate, where you interact with the rep. No phone call necessary. Is that difficult for other card providers to implement? Nope. Do they make it as simple as Apple does to see your information? Nope If you have the Health app, using an Apple Card is kinda like that in the wallet app. Tons of your own information readily available and presented well.