Venmo Wants to Let Consumers Build Up Rewards ‘Stash’

PayPal-owned peer-to-peer payment app Venmo is launching what it calls its first “always-on” rewards program.

Venmo Stash, announced Monday (Nov. 10), lets customers earn up to 5% cash back on everyday purchases.

“Stash builds on the app’s evolution from a peer-to-peer payment app to an everyday commerce platform built for how the next generation manages and moves their money,” the company said in a news release provided to PYMNTS.

“They’re rewards-hungry and want flexibility, personalization, and products that fit into their existing behaviors. Stash meets them where they are.”

According to the release, Stash customers get 1% cash back when they spend with the Venmo Debit Card at their selected bundle, which jumps to 2% cash back when they set up auto reloads to replenish their balance, and to 5% cash back when they get direct deposits on Venmo each month. Rewards are deposited into their Venmo balance, letting customers spend as they choose.

The company notes that Venmo Stash operates alongside the debit card rewards offer Venmo introduced earlier this year, letting Venmo Debit Card users stack rewards when limited-time offers are presented by the same merchant.

“Venmo Stash is designed to evolve alongside Venmo’s expanding product ecosystem and include more ways to get rewarded for interactions with Venmo, including when users pay with Venmo at its network of nationwide merchants, coming next year,” the release added.

In other rewards news, PYMNTS spoke last week with Bill Kennedy, chief financial officer and interim CEO of Galileo Financial Technologies, about his company’s partnership with Southwest Airlines to launch the new Rapid Rewards Visa debit card.

Kennedy told PYMNTS’ Karen Webster that the timing was right to introduce debit into the loyalty mainstream. Travel is still one of the most powerful categories for rewards, and brands such Southwest recognize the potential to attract customers who prefer debit to credit.

“The younger population skews more toward experiences,” he said. “They also skew more to debit. It’s a combination of bringing new customers in, making them loyal to your brand by giving them rewards and access to perks, and building that loyalty with that consumer.”

Kennedy added consumers’ preference for debit is about access to credit as well as intent, and that cultivating loyalty with those customers is crucial.

“Debit and credit rewards are different, but they’re still aiming to do the same thing — that is, to build loyalty with the customer for an affinity with that brand,” he said.