Plastc Card Banks on Ongoing Need for Physical Card for Payments

Plastc Card with E InkPlastc Card wants to replace your wallet with a single digital credit card and they are upping the competition to first mover COIN.  Plastc recently launched a pretail campaign to fund their high tech plastic and they are betting that Apple Pay won’t swamp the digital wallet space as “There’s a shit ton of places where you will still have to use a physical card”, according to co-founder and COO Ryan Marquis.

Plastc App on iPhoneThe Plastc Card has differentiated their product from COIN – a payment device that recently encountered a serious stumble as their delivery date was pushed back for early backers.  Plastc incorporates an E-ink screen plus rewrite able NFC/RFID tech giving it a leg up on COIN.  Recent information on COIN indicates their product will hold up to 8 cards.  Plastc claims to hold 20.  COIN has an estimated battery life of up to 2 years.  Plastc needs a charge about every 30 days but has no stated shelf life.  Of course there is an associated App that accomplishes everything you would expect and want it to do.

The one advantage COIN has going for it is the current price point is $100.  To purchase a Plastc you need to kick in $155.

Plastc also has set up multiple agreements with several big banks – a strategic move that probably helps with popular acceptance.  These deals include arrangements with Citibank, Bank of America, Chase and more.  Plastc is also sensitive to the forthcoming shift to EMV stating in TechCrunch that “Plastc’s also been built to accommodate future payment technologies like chip and PIN technology, so that the Mark stubbscard will work globally after an update in 2015″.

One thing is certain; the days are limited for the bulging wallet protruding from too many back pockets – and honestly this is well over due.  The biggest challenge for Plastc, outside of competing technology, is the fact that pretail purchasers are not expected to receive their Plastc until the Summer of 2015.

Ryan marquisPlastc was founded by CEO Mark Stubbs and Marquis.  The pair worked together at PixelMags a company that is cashing in on the dying print industry. The PixelMag product creates transition point from print to digital recognizing the dinosaurs of print need some help.  Perhaps they came to the same realization about payment platform providers. An industry in need of digital change but too set in their ways to do it themselves.

Plastc has certainly paid attention to COIN and their struggles.  In the end it may be a good thing they came in second.  Regardless both COIN and Plastc will not hit wide scale release until sometime in the future and by then – who knows.

Plastc LogoBut for now the feature set and functionality of Plastc appears to have everything lined up just right.  Until we pay via retinal scan, or some other bio trick, we are going to need some sort of payment device, and Plastc wants to be that payment device.


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