More or less every person that visits Starbucks regularly is a member of the Starbucks loyalty program and has a Starbucks card. Starbucks has more than $3 billion worth of money loaded onto these cards by customers. This is so much money that in fact if Starbucks was a bank, it would rank as the 385th largest bank in the United States. This is money that Starbucks gets to use upfront as revenue before a single product is even purchased.
The Starbucks app was launched in 2009, which was very early for these kinds of apps. However, at the end of 2021, mobile orders accounted for nearly a quarter of all Starbucks transactions in the United States. Today, nearly 44% of all transactions are done through the Starbucks card.
Moreover, the balance in a customer's Starbucks wallet can not be withdrawn as cash and can only be used for buying drinks and snacks at a Starbucks store. Hence, the customers of Starbucks have collectively provided the company with a $1.5 billion loan at an effective 0% interest rate. Starbucks may use this money to invest in the market, earning profits for free, or spend it on its expansion. Furthermore, about 10% of the money would be forgotten by customers and would never be used which would provide Starbucks with a free income of approximately $150 million.
In conclusion, Starbucks is an unregulated bank, not a mere coffee company. We cannot be sure what Starbucks will do next, or what its goals are but industry experts believe Starbucks could get involved in asset management through its prepaid cards, as well as currency exchange, loan, and insurance sectors.
WOAHHH! never knew about this and I am a huge Starbucks fan!!!!