Lloyds to grab stake in loyalty app Bink

Lloyds Banking Group is following Barclays and taking a stake in fintech loyalty platform Bink.

Britain’s biggest high street bank is close to investing millions of pounds in return for a minority stake in the fintech, according to a Sky News report.

The fintech’s technology allows customers to link payment cards to loyalty programmes, enabling them to automatically collect loyalty points when they buy goods or services with the card.

Its retail partners include Iceland, Harvey Nichols, and the Japanese food chain Wasabi.

The deal with Lloyds follows a deal with rival banking giant Barclays in 2019 as part of a wider partnership, with the bank reportedly investing £10m in Bink.

Barclays at the time said it was committed to making a “significant” investment in Bink, which is based in Ascot.

It is unclear how much Lloyds is planning to invest in Bink, but further details should emerge in the coming weeks.

Bink is also said to be looking to raise more funding from additional shareholders, alongside the funds from Lloyds.

Last year, Bink struck a deal with Wasabi to revamp its loyalty programme. Wasabi said Bink’s “technology allows customers to easily build up loyalty rewards and never miss out".

High street banks have looked to both invest in and launch their own fintechs to ensure they stay competitive and fend off the threat from standalone fintechs.

Bink and Lloyds declined to comment.