FinTech News
FinTech App Paydownhero Announces Upcoming Gas Rewards Debit Card
A FinTech app that aims to help drivers pay down their car loan balances by rounding up their everyday purchases is set to expand into the world of debit cards. This week, Paydownhero announced plans for their Paydown Rewards Card. Using this option, customers will not only earn rewards at the pump but will also receive boosts on their roundups, allowing them to pay off their cars even faster. The Mastercard will be issued by Evolve Bank — which has previously partnered with a number of other FinTechs including Yotta and PrizePool.
According to Paydownhero’s site, the Paydown Rewards Card will have three levels: Regular, Plus, and Premium. The free Regular tier card offers 1% gas rewards as well as 5% Roundup Matching. Those raise to 2% gas rewards and 10% Roundup Matching for the $1.99 a month Plus card, while the $5.99 a month Premium card boasts the full 3% gas rewards and 15% Roundup Matching touted by the company. Presumably, these costs come in addition to the $1.99 a month subscription fee the regular Paydownhero round-up app charges.
Along with opening the waitlist for the card, Paydownhero has also launched a contest that will see one customer win up to $50,000 to pay off their car loan. However, instead of being a sweepstakes where users are chosen at random, winners of this content will be those who place atop the app’s leaderboard. To do this, customers can earn points. Specifically, users will gain one point when they join the waitlist, another point for each platform they share their referral link on, and five points for every friend who signs up using said referral link. In addition to the grand prize, the second-place finisher will see their car payments made by Paydownhero for one year (up to $600 a month). Lastly, the customer who places third will earn 300% cash match on their roundups for one year.
Commenting on the overall idea of Paydownhero, the startup’s co-founder and CEO Ken Sargavakian stated, “Cars are central to most families’ lives. We aim to help users manage one of life’s most costly ongoing expenses. Your car expenses shouldn’t be a mystery. The experience of paying down debt, saving money, and enjoying the rewards should be frictionless.”
As for the new debit card offering, co-founder and CPO Erik Rueda said, “We can’t wait to give our customers cash to pay down more debt and put more money directly into users’ pockets. The debit card and cash rewards will help users manage the major expense of car ownership and anticipated developments will add even more features to support financial goals.”
Paydownhero certainly isn’t the first FinTech to launch its own debit card, but the Paydown Rewards Card does have some unique features. At the same time, the fees associated with the upper-tier products could make the math untenable for some users. Thus, while it may be worth joining the waitlist and holding out for more info, it remains to be seen whether the Paydown Rewards debit card will ultimately be as attractive a product as its basic pitch makes it sound.
