Visa, the world leader in digital payments, has announced a strategic partnership in Asia Pacific with Ascenda, the loyalty technology company.
The payments network will be first globally to leverage Ascenda’s new Nexus platform, which will enable Visa’s partners to adopt a comprehensive new rewards program for their customers.
With this backdrop of a changing environment, the Visa and Ascenda partnership means card issuers, like banks or fintechs, can deploy rewards programs that are easy to implement and use, in a fraction of the typical lead-time. The digital rewards portal powered by Ascenda comes with offers and promotions from leading merchants via Visa Offers Exchange and Ascenda’s global network.
Rapid implementation of the new platform is possible because the traditional integration points required for new loyalty solutions are removed. By leveraging Visa’s latest API services, Ascenda authenticates customers securely and identifies payment transactions that are eligible for rewards – with minimal action required from the issuer.
Chris Clark, regional president, Asia Pacific, Visa, said:
“As Visa evolves our business beyond cards, reward programs are becoming more digital, more engaging, more personalised, and easier to adapt to new opportunities. Our partnership with Ascenda ensures Visa is able to deliver loyalty platforms that match the pace of digital adoption our bank and fintech partners need.”
Sebastian Grobys, chief commercial officer at Ascenda, said:
“Visa and Ascenda already have a strong track record of partnering to equip top-tier banks with leading customer engagement solutions. With Visa now leveraging our new Nexus model and integrating Visa’s existing engagement solutions for rapid deployment, we are unlocking significantly greater scale for our collaboration going forward.”
