Apple should buy a bank? That’s stupid, I shan’t count the ways.
Own “the entire product”? As in Crutchfield become an audio equipment manufacturer and buy a music recording studio? or Ford buy Texaco and change pumps so only their gas can be used, all arranged so only private Ford-owned roads can be driven on? or Olive Garden only serve food grown by wholly-owned subsidiary farms? Ain’t happening.
Kick non-compliant banks out of the process, yes. The product just launched 5 months ago, we’re not talking a long established service here. I’m sure Apple is having some rather animated private meetings with banks, and may very well have a timetable for partners to shape up or get shoved out. Remember, you just heard about this, what, today? takes a little time for a new large-scale service to get started and shake the stupid out of partners.
What’s stupid about Apple becoming a bank and then spinning it off later if it wants out?
Both Apple and MSFT had talked about morphing into banks in the past.
As a bank, they could operate on some sort of modified wire transfer basis and cut out the human. It’s not a horrible idea. Add to that they can cut the bank out of their current currency arbitrage process and there are all kinds of reasons why a bank makes sense.
Why have branches when you have Facetime and ApplePay?
Rather than go into ALl the reasons, what is a show-stopper reason why a company with the free cash of Apple not do something like this. One showstopper is the SEC. I get that, potentially.
What would be another? Any business that had a cash register and a bank account to give cash to an Apple banking customer and that business would automatically see funds in their account for the amount of the cash, plus a fee for their trouble. The whole world could be a teller, for the most part. Loans would be a little different, and maybe you stay out of those for now.
I don’t know. You want to talk about really having transaction traffic - be your own bank.