Why would a bank buy a media company?

With the news of JPMorgan’s acquisition of the food discovery and reviews service The Infatuation, there are signs that firms competing in the payments space are thinking differently about what drives spending.

Why it matters

Credit card spending matters hugely to banks’ business models. Among big spenders, rewards are a key reason to choose a product with The Infatuation’s acquisition – for an undisclosed sum – joining several other dining-related perks offered to customers.

It speaks to a wider rethink of what communications look like, and what they need to do in engagement-based businesses like credit cards. As former Digiday EIC Brian Morrissey commented, “some will build, some will buy” media assets capable of driving engagement.

What’s happening

• Reported by the FT, JPMorgan Chase’s purchase of the service, which focuses on the US but also maintains editorial operations in a handful of international locations, brings onboard a media property that is extremely popular with millennials.
• One of its main US brands, Chase, launched a dining hub that gave access and deals to over 4,000 restaurants for holders of certain credit card products.
• Traditional perks have become almost unsustainably expensive following the pandemic; credit-card spending in restaurants is already growing under the loosening of restrictions and deals on meals come far cheaper than air miles.
• The news follows American Express’s 2019 acquisition of the booking platform Resy, which has expanded the credit card company’s offer.

Key quote

“[The deal] demonstrates JPMorgan Chase’s commitment to meeting customers where they are with exceptional benefits, useful content and one-of-a-kind experiences, at scale” – JPMorgan statement to the FT.

Sourced from the FT