Walgreens to roll out bank account, following in the footsteps of Walmart

With more than 9,000 stores across the U.S. and interactions with 8 million customers in-store and online, pharmacy retailer Walgreens is now betting on financial services in a tie-up with card issuer MetaBank and payments provider InComm Payments.

Why should we care?
With a growing number of options in the field of banking-as-a-service, retailers are taking advantage of their large customer bases and physical location networks to offer customers financial services. For example, Walmart, which recently poached key Goldman Sachs executives in an effort to launch an internal fintech startup, has offered prepaid cards, money-transfer services, and other financial services for years. Walgreens says it’s going to provide “convenient and accessible financial services” for customers, including a bank account offering, in partnership with MetaBank, along with chances to earn myWalgreens Cash rewards on all purchases as part of a new loyalty program launched in December. The company intends to roll out financial services as part of an “alternative profit strategy” – a business line it says is aligned with its health and well-being focus. It will also serve as a tool to grow its loyalty program and personalization capabilities. The financial services offering will tap payments company InComm Payments’ banking-as-a-service platform. The product is expected to roll out the second half of this year. “Walgreens is committed to helping customers with their health and well-being needs, and we’re pleased to expand our financial services offerings to further enrich the experiences and ways we meet customers’ financial needs,” John Standley, president of Walgreens, said in a statement. “We look forward to exploring and introducing even more customer-focused health and well-being payment initiatives in the near future, while creating new revenue streams.”