Apple Inc. has growing ambitions in fintech as it explores ways to participate more directly in the financial services industry, according to a Wednesday report.
The company is developing payment processing technology and tools that could support future ambitions, according to Bloomberg News. Finally, Apple AAPL,
could be less dependent on partners that support current fintech offerings such as Apple Pay, Apple Card and Apple Cash.
Actions de Green Dot Corp. GDOT,
which helps facilitate the Apple Cash money transfer service, fell 10.6% in Wednesday trading after the report was released, although they pared some of those losses and ended the day down 5 .2%. Shares of CoreCard Corp. CCRD,
who would perform payment processing work related to Apple’s proposed credit card with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. GS,
were down 12.2%; Goldman Sachs shares fell 1.2%.
Apple shares weren’t helped by the report as they fell 0.7% to snap an 11-game winning streak. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CNET on its financial services goals.
Apple is currently involved in a number of fintech projects, leveraging support from partners. While Apple Pay is probably the company’s best-known foray, Apple also has its credit card and installment program for device purchases. Additionally, it recently announced that it will begin allowing merchants to use their iPhones as acceptance devices for contactless payments.
The smartphone giant may have recently signaled its growing fintech ambitions through the acquisition of Credit Kudos, a company that aims to improve credit ratings. Although Apple did not respond to a previous CNET inquiry into the acquisition, Credit Kudos’ terms of service page currently describes the company as an Apple subsidiary.