Ridesharing company Uber announced news of the launch of its Uber Visa Card, which is a credit card with no annual fee.
In a blog post, the company said it created the card with its riders in mind after speaking with them about how and where they spend their money and what they want from a credit card.
The result is the Uber Visa Card, which enables users to earn rewards on all of their purchases. The rewards points increase when the credit card is used on meals, booking a trip, shopping online or hailing an Uber ride. Users can redeem the rewards for Uber credit, cash back or choose from a variety of gift cards. The card also comes with an annual $50 subscription credit that can be used for services including Spotify, Netflix and Amazon Prime membership.
Cardholders also get coverage if their smartphone is stolen or damaged and will receive invites to events, secret shows and dining experiences, Uber said in the blog post. The company tapped Barclaycard to offer the new credit card.
Uber isn’t the only ridesharing company that has aspirations to get into the credit card business. The Wall Street Journal reported in July that Lyft was gearing up to launch its own branded credit card, although no specifics or timing of the launch were available.
The move on the part of Uber comes as it’s trying to improve its reputation and boost its workplace culture following the resignation of CEO Travis Kalanick and numerous scandals within the company.
Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported the company was facing five or more criminal investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), two of which have been already reported. When Dara Khosrowshahi was appointed the new CEO in September, he reportedly told employees to prepare for a tough six months ahead. The company is the recipient of a bevy of lawsuits in which the DOJ is looking into allegations of bribes, illicit software, pricing schemes and theft of the intellectual property of a competitor.
