- 01Major bank adds FlexiRoam to Mastercard premium cards.
- 02Annual 3GB roaming: 15 days, 150+ regions.
- 03~$200k yearly fee estimate; not guidance.
One of Australia’s four major banks has added FlexiRoam (ASX: FRX) global data roaming as a complimentary benefit on its premium rewards credit cards, offered through a partnership with Mastercard.
FlexiRoam has signed the onboarding document for the undisclosed bank’s participation in the program, whereby the bank will fund the benefit for its cardholders and FlexiRoam will earn an annual fee for each card.
Under the terms, each eligible card account will be able to claim 3 gigabytes of global data roaming once each calendar year, valid for 15 days in more than 150 countries and regions, with cardholders receiving a 20% discount on further FlexiRoam data plans once the complimentary benefit expires.
The program, which has no fixed term and no minimum card or revenue commitment, will continue for as long as the bank offers the benefit.
Expected Fee Revenues
Complementary global data roaming has been offered through 418 banks and 1,270 Mastercard programs in 78 countries (as at 30 June), with the planning case of the latest deal suggesting an expected fee revenue of approximately $200,000 a year for FlexiRoam.
The planning case covers only the benefit as currently offered, based on projected eligible cards and the applicable annual fee per card, while excluding revenue from further data purchases and from any further benefits or card portfolios that may be added to the program, each of which would require its own onboarding.
It is not a minimum commitment or revenue guidance and actual revenue will depend on the number of eligible cards and may differ materially.
Adoption by one of Australia’s four major banks validates FlexiRoam’s travel data benefit in the Australian premium credit card market, strengthens its position as a provider of cardholder benefits, and demonstrates that its partnership with Mastercard can deliver recurring domestic revenue.
Significant Achievement
FlexiRoam executive director Jefrey Ong said having one of Australia’s major banks on its books was a significant achievement.
“It shows our model is working as designed—the bank funds the benefit, Mastercard is the channel and FlexiRoam earns a fee on every eligible card,” he said.
“Card economics are changing, and we believe issuers will look harder at benefits that cardholders value highly and that are efficient to fund, and that is what we offer.
“In our annual report, we said our first priority for the 2027 financial year was converting agreements into deployed recurring revenue, and this is that priority delivered.”
Credit Card Tailwind
The Australian credit card market experienced a structural tailwind for card benefits at the beginning of this month, with the introduction of lower caps on interchange fees (or costs paid to the bank each time a credit card is used for a purchase to help fund the rewards and benefits attached to cards).
Following its March review of card payment costs, the Reserve Bank of Australia cut the cap on interchange for domestic consumer credit cards from 0.8% to 0.3% of the transaction value, matching rates on consumer credit cards in the European Union and the UK.
The RBA estimates that its reforms will reduce issuer interchange revenues by approximately $660 million a year.
FlexiRoam believes that as interchange falls, issuers will favour benefits that cardholders value highly and that are cost-efficient to provide—such as travel data, which is funded at a modest annual fee per card and can save travellers a cost they would otherwise pay per trip.
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