Samsung launches Galaxy Card with Barclays on Visa network

Samsung has introduced the Samsung Galaxy Card, its first credit card, extending its digital wallet into consumer credit through a product issued by Barclays US Consumer Bank on the Visa network. The card offers users up to 5% cash rewards, with elevated rewards for purchases from Samsung, including its newest devices.

The launch places Samsung more directly in the payments and rewards market, where device makers use wallets, card partnerships and merchant offers to keep customers inside their product ecosystems. Samsung said 70% of US households have a Samsung device and nearly 30% own three or more of its products, figures that indicate the scale of the customer base it can address with the card.

Samsung said customers will be able to apply for the Galaxy Card, manage the account, monitor spending and redeem rewards through Samsung Wallet. The card will be available in digital form and as a premium metal physical card carrying a black Samsung logo.

How the card is structured

The Galaxy Card uses a common co-branded card model. Barclays US Consumer Bank acts as the issuer, which means it provides the credit account and handles the banking role behind the card. Visa supplies the network, enabling acceptance at merchants that take Visa cards. Samsung provides the consumer brand, Wallet integration and rewards connection to its device and services business.

That structure lets Samsung add a financial product without becoming the card-issuing bank. It also gives Barclays access to Samsung’s customer base and gives Visa another consumer card tied to a major technology brand.

Samsung said rewards will apply to everyday purchases made with the card, with higher points available on spending with Samsung. The company did not provide further details in the announcement on annual fees, interest rates, eligibility criteria or the full rewards schedule.

Samsung follows Apple into branded credit

Samsung’s move comes seven years after Apple introduced its own credit card. Finextra reported that Apple’s card currently has up to $20 billion in account balances.

Woncheol Chai, executive vice president and head of the digital wallet team at Samsung Electronics’ Mobile eXperience business, said Samsung products had long been used for daily activities including communication, relaxation and productivity. “Today, Samsung Galaxy Card offers users a new way to be rewarded every time you pay,” Chai said.

The card expands Samsung Wallet from a payment and credential tool into a credit-account interface. For users, the key operational change is that application, account management, spending review and rewards redemption sit in one Samsung-controlled digital channel, while the regulated credit product remains with Barclays and transactions run over Visa’s payment rails.

This story draws on original reporting from Finextra Research.