Goldman Chief to Attend Apple Services Event Ahead of Joint Credit Card
When Apple showcases its much-anticipated pivot into new services next week, Goldman Sachs’s CEO will be on hand
(Bloomberg) -- When Apple Inc. showcases its much-anticipated pivot into new services next week, Goldman Sachs’s chief executive officer will be on hand -- a sign of how the powerhouses of finance and technology see their futures intertwining.
David Solomon, who became the investment bank’s CEO in October, has been invited and plans to show up in Cupertino, California, for Apple’s services launch on March 25, according to people familiar with the matter. He isn’t currently slated to take the stage, the people said, but his appearance indicates the companies could publicly discuss their partnership.
Spokesmen for Apple and Goldman declined to comment.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s work with the maker of mobile phones and laptops on a co-branded credit card emerged last year as they push deeper into the financial lives of consumers. Apple plans to release a revised Wallet app for Apple Pay coming in its next iPhone software update. That will lay the groundwork for the card. Reporters who cover the payments industry have been invited to attend as well.
The credit card is code-named “Project Cookie” inside the New York-based bank, according to a person with knowledge of its work. David Stark, who became a Goldman Sachs partner last year, is overseeing it, the person said. The firm has dozens of people working on the deal, while the Apple side is being managed by the Apple Pay group, people familiar with the matter said.
The co-branded cards may help both companies entrench themselves in the rapidly changing financial ecosystem used by both consumers and retailers. Goldman Sachs, long known for catering to big investors, corporations and the wealthy, is trying to broaden that customer base. The push includes a new unit, called Marcus, which offers deposit accounts and loans online.
Apple is looking to expand, too, planning to introduce a video streaming service to rival Netflix and a premium magazine subscription bundle, people with knowledge of its plans have said. Apple could theoretically share in the fees collected by Goldman, contributing to services revenue that the technology company anticipates will hit $50 billion a year by 2021.
To contact the reporters on this story: Mark Gurman in San Francisco at mgurman1@bloomberg.net;Sridhar Natarajan in New York at snatarajan15@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Michael J. Moore at mmoore55@bloomberg.net, David Scheer, Dan Reichl
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