Visa and Ascenda partner on next-gen loyalty and rewards in Asia Pacific

As consumer expectations around their rewards evolve, Visa and Ascenda will offer banks and fintechs a new solution to get loyalty programs up and running in a fraction of the typical lead time

SINGAPORE, Aug. 24, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Visa, the world leader in digital payments, today 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.

Reward programs continue to evolve as consumer preferences and behaviours change, in line with larger trends on how people shop. The rise of eCommerce has created new habits and opportunities to engage before, during and after the transaction. The increased role that data plays in the average consumer's day has led to greater expectations around receiving personalised rewards instead of a general set of benefits. And during the COVID-19 pandemic, traditional benefits like air miles have been less easily used.

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."

"Visa and Ascenda already have a strong track record of partnering to equip top-tier banks with leading customer engagement solutions," said Sebastian Grobys, chief commercial officer at Ascenda. "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."

The Visa-Ascenda rewards solution is being rolled out progressively across Asia Pacific.

About Visa Inc.
Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) is the world's leader in digital payments. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, reliable and secure payment network — enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. Our advanced global processing network, VisaNet, provides secure and reliable payments around the world, and is capable of handling more than 65,000 transaction messages a second. The company's relentless focus on innovation is a catalyst for the rapid growth of connected commerce on any device, and a driving force behind the dream of a cashless future for everyone, everywhere. As the world moves from analog to digital, Visa is applying our brand, products, people, network and scale to reshape the future of commerce. For more information, visit About Visa, visa.com/blog and @VisaNews.

About Ascenda
Ascenda is a global fintech that makes customer engagement simple by powering rewards technology and payment propositions for leading financial services brands.

Ascenda delivers fully-digital, intuitive and easy-to-deploy loyalty solutions that enable banks to build deeper customer relationships across the entire banking relationship. The company serves financial services clients in more than 40 markets including many leading banks such as HSBC, Barclays, Standard Chartered and Capital One as well as disruptors such as Virgin Money Australia's new digital bank.

For more information about Ascenda, please visit ascendaloyalty.com.