The company has also launched P2P “Friends” money feature in addition to a suite of flexible saving features specifically designed to help creators, freelancers and other DIYers pay collaborators and achieve multiple savings goals
Digital finance platform Oxygen announced an ambitious new loyalty and savings program, Oxygen Elements, with four different levels to choose from. The loyalty program offers debit cardholders cashback on everyday spend items, a series of escalating annual percentage yields (APYs), subscription savings from brands like Netflix and Peloton, and robust retail and travel benefits.1
“This is the most ambitious debit card loyalty program on the market, providing members with the kind of flexibility and benefits that used to be associated only with top-tier credit cards”
“This is the most ambitious debit card loyalty program on the market, providing members with the kind of flexibility and benefits that used to be associated only with top-tier credit cards,” said Oxygen CEO Hussein Ahmed. “As many American consumers—especially Millennial and Gen Z—move away from credit to debit cards, they expect and deserve the same kind of exciting loyalty programs. That’s what we’ve created.”
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A debit loyalty program for today’s consumer
Debit cards used to be very simple spending products with limited perks. With the introduction of Oxygen Elements, debit cardholders will now enjoy leading cashback rates of up to 6% at approved merchants and retail and travel perks like Global Entry/TSA precheck reimbursement, in addition to a 100% Digital PriorityPass™ Select Global Airport lounge membership, the first of its kind in the US.
“We recognize there is a pent-up demand for safe travel after the pandemic,” says Sheryl Pflaum, President for the Americas at Collinson and Priority Pass. “The Oxygen cardholder, independent and not tied to a specific location, can take advantage of Priority Pass, the first all-digital program in the US for a contactless experience within lounges. We are excited to unveil this partnership with Oxygen, which has a strong history of creating meaningful experiences for a digital-native consumer.” Ahmed sees the same demand. “The pandemic has changed how and where we live and work. We’ve structured Elements to recognize this new reality. Whether you want to be a digital nomad or re-engage in person, we give you the means to do so safely and in style.”
Each Elements program tier will continue to have access to over 40,000 fee-free domestic ATMs from Allpoint’s network, virtual cards for safe online spending, and access to two-day early pay on direct deposits.2 With Elements, Oxygen has added standard benefits for all tiers, like cell phone insurance and extended warranty protection, as well as general travel coverage on things like delayed and lost baggage, an auto rental collision damage waiver, and hotel theft insurance.
The four Elements—Earth, Water, Air and Fire—offer Oxygen cardholders a choice from an escalating menu of annual perks. All new cardholders start off in the Earth element, which offers an enticing set of benefits. From there, users can choose whether they want to access additional benefits by simply meeting spend and deposit qualifications and paying a variable one-time fee.
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A savings program for doers, makers and creators
The new savings program enables members to create separate long- and short-term savings goals by reinforcing positive savings behaviors, gamifying the experience, and offering robust APYs, up to 20x the current national rate, according to the latest average on bankrate.com.
The savings program provides several different features:
- Flexible savings features. Savers can set rules to automate a percentage transfer to their savings any time they receive money into their deposit account.
- Round up spare change. When cardholders use their Oxygen debit cards to make purchases, they can incorporate “round ups”—rounding up the change to the nearest dollar on card spend and moving it into their savings account, with the ability to create round-up accelerators, such as 1x, 2x or 3x, by goal.
- Increasingly robust savings APY. Oxygen savings accounts help their cardholders grow their savings with APYs up to 1.25%3 on the first $20,000.
Easily pay friends, split bills and more
Messaging apps have been a staple of modern communication for years now, and Oxygen’s new P2P “Friends” feature allows friends to collaborate and engage on perhaps the most social of all topics: money. Users can easily find and create both one-to-one as well as group payments, making it easier to split bills with friends by a fixed dollar amount or percentage, thus allowing them to quickly settle up with friends and be on their way. With the group feature, multiple friends can also create joint expenses for upcoming events, like a birthday, and deliver a gift that is unique and personalized.
“The 21st century economy is unlike economies of the past. People earn, spend and share money differently than they used to, and their expectations have shifted,” said Ahmed. “Our vision is to create products and services that help the creators and builders of the new economy thrive financially, and this is an important step.”
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