Stack Adds Mastercard’s Tap Payments to Digital Money App

Two weeks ahead of its official beta launch, Stack has partnered with Mastercard to roll out the first digital money account with a mobile tap-to-pay option.

All Stack accounts will include a chip-and-pin Mastercard prepaid card, giving users a secure point-of-sale to access global retailers and ATMs.

The Toronto-based Stack offers users free access to smart financial services without any banking fees—a stark contrast to traditional banking.

“Partnering with Mastercard supports our mission to provide a better alternative to traditional financial services, without compromising convenience or reliability,” said Stack CEO Miro Pavletic. “Mastercard is a trusted technology expert in the payments industry, and we’re committed to working with the best of the best.”

Stack is branding themselves as a “social money platform,” an app-based solution that combines advanced machine learning with customizable tools to manage money from a smartphone. Users also have instant access to both multi-currency and crypto wallets, features of what they’re calling a “360 degree solution to personal finance.”

Stack is the first fintech company in North America to empower their members to pay for purchases directly with their mobile phones.

“Canadians want to manage their money on their own terms and Stack is giving them that ability,” said Patrick Sulston, Mastercard’s vice president of market development in Canada. “With a Mastercard prepaid card inside the Stack app, Canadians can easily, securely and conveniently access their funds and shop in-store and online.”

Stack comes with other features including automated savings, instant rewards and social sharing, elements that play into the fintech company’s lifestyle-focused approach to financial services.

“Canadians deserve better than what’s available in the current market,” said Pavletic. “With the advancements of tech-enabled financial services, we can finally offer a replacement to legacy institutions with a new, more consumer-friendly alternative.”

So far, that new “consumer-friendly alternative” has drawn 20,000 Canadians to register for the beta app, slated to onboard users late September through Google Play. Stack said they’re preparing a public launch for Apple and Android devices later this year.