Retailer Financial Services in Northern and Central Europe
Finaccord, November 2009, Pages: 240
Retailer Financial Services in Northern and Central Europe is a report, based on a survey of 1,285 high profile retail brands in 14 countries in Northern and Central Europe, about the activity and partnerships of major retailers in areas of financial services including payment cards, consumer finance, retail banking and mainstream insurance policies, namely motor insurance, household insurance, accident insurance, dental insurance, other health insurance, travel insurance, pet insurance and life insurance. In addition, the study also covers proprietary and coalition loyalty schemes and international remittances. Countries covered are Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, Sweden and Switzerland. In fact, the study provides a comprehensive and detailed overview of the market for retailer financial services across the 14 countries in Northern and Central Europe that goes far beyond the scope of previously published research. Moreover, the PartnerBASE™ database that accompanies the report details each of the many marketing initiatives for co-branded and store cards, proprietary and coalition loyalty programs, consumer finance, banking products, retailer insurance and international remittances traced by Finaccord. Other global regions covered in sister reports and associated databases are Eastern and South-Eastern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East, and North and Latin America.
Key features of this report include:
- comprehensive coverage of the involvement in financial services of 1,285 major retail brands in eight countries in Northern and Central Europe;
- investigation of over 650 schemes for retailer payment cards and point-of-sale finance: which finance providers are strong in which countries and with which retail chains do they collaborate?
- identification of close to 500 proprietary retailer loyalty programs including the split by country according to whether they are linked to a corresponding payment card or to a card with no payment function;
- focus on key initiatives in retailer banking such as C&A Bank, EDEKA Bank, ICA Banken, IKANO Banken, MedMera Bank, Migros Bank and Resurs Bank;
- in-depth consideration of retailer provision of mainstream insurance: 32 major retail brands in Northern and Central Europe were active in ‘brandassurance’ by the end of 2009.
0.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The research is based on a survey of 1,285 major retail brands across 14 countries
Close to a quarter of major retail brands in the region operate their own payment card scheme
A number of fuel retailers have introduced consumer-oriented co-branded cards
MasterCard is involved in more than twice as many retailer co-branded cards as Visa
Issuers owned or controlled by BNP Paribas, GE Capital and IKANO are particularly influential
Nearly 40% of all major retail chains in Northern and Central Europe offer their own loyalty scheme
Coalition loyalty programs have taken root to one extent or another in 11 of the countries surveyed
The impact of the ‘credit crunch’ may have been positive for classic point-of-sale finance
More general retailer banking ventures are apparent only in four out of the 14 territories
Household and motor cover are the insurance products most frequently offered by retailers
The worldwide recession has affected retailers in Northern and Central Europe to varying degrees
Several major international retailing groups are expanding in Northern and Central Europe
Consumer research in Germany and the UK offers encouragement for retailers in other nations
Several factors are likely to drive the future development of retailer financial services…
… including points specific to consumers, financial institutions and the retail brands themselves
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Rationale
Retailer financial services can be broken down between ‘traditional’ and ‘non-traditional’ services
Retailers can take advantage of changes in consumer finance and payment card markets
Consolidation among conventional banks provides justification for the entry of retailer banks
The evolution of the retailing market itself is also favourable to the integration of financial services
Methodology
Finaccord’s research covers 1,285 major retail brands across Northern and Central Europe
Major retailers covered by the research segmented by category and by country
Product definitions
Coverage of payment cards includes credit, deferred debit, debit and rechargeable pre-paid cards ...
Proprietary and coalition loyalty programs are present in a variety of different formats
The involvement of retail chains in the distribution of consumer credit is also considered…
… as is their activity as distributors of mainstream consumer insurance products
Finaccord
2.0 REGIONAL OVERVIEW
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
Retailers in Denmark, Switzerland and Norway are most likely to have their own payment card
As a result of fuel cards, payment cards are most widespread among fuel retailing brands
Most fuel retailers in the region continue to focus on offering traditional fuel cards only
Retailer payment cards exist more frequently as credit cards than as debit or pre-paid cards
Credit and deferred debit cards are most likely to be developed through non-captive card issuers
Over a quarter of the region’s retailer payment cards are linked exclusively to MasterCard
The strength of the main international card networks varies substantially by country
Initiatives attributable to BNP Paribas, GE Capital and IKANO account for over 20% of programs
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
In relative terms, proprietary programs are most common in Austria, Slovakia and Lithuania
Department stores display an especially high propensity to develop their own loyalty schemes
More than a quarter of all proprietary loyalty programs identified are linked to a payment card
Coalition loyalty programs
Retail chain participation in coalition loyalty schemes is most advanced in Estonia and Finland…
… and among speciality retail brands, followed by department store chains
Consumer finance / personal loans
Classic point-of-sale finance is most common in Poland, Germany and Slovakia
Retailers of furniture and household goods are most likely to make consumer loans available
Captive lending institutions are active in seven of the 14 countries considered in the region
Banking products
Retailer involvement in mainstream banking is apparent in only four countries in the region
Captives and joint ventures
Captive retailer finance arms can be of significant interest to mainstream banking institutions
Insurance
Retail brands are active in promoting insurance in six of the 14 countries investigated…
Household and motor policies are the most frequently offered forms of retailer insurance
Supermarkets and department stores benefit from high ‘footfall’ and burgeoning e-commerce
Captive brokers play a significant role in Germany but not in other countries in the region
International remittance services
Major retailers in six countries offer in international remittance services
There are around 18.04 million international migrants in Northern and Central Europe…
… generating international remittance outflows worth in excess of US$46 billion…
… with the value of outflows per international migrant highest in Norway
The evidence of consumer research in Germany and the UK
Supermarkets and other retailers are influential in Germany for certain financial products…
… most notably personal loans / consumer finance and credit cards…
… although there is little evidence to suggest that consumers will use them to buy insurance
In contrast, retail brands are significant for various types of insurance in the UK…
… with their distribution share apparently highest for pet insurance
3.0 AUSTRIA
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
Retailer-owned card issuers dominate Austria’s payment card market
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
More than half of Austrian retailers have their own loyalty program
Coalition loyalty programs
Coalition loyalty schemes are comparatively rare in Austria
Consumer finance / personal loans
Santander’s takeover of GE Money Bank enhances its dominance in consumer finance
Banking products
MERKUR has diversified into both savings and mortgage products
Insurance
In contrast to Germany, Tchibo is currently not offering insurance products in Austria
International remittance services
Niedermeyer is expanding the availability of international remittance services
4.0 CZECH REPUBLIC
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
Only a limited number of retailers offer co-branded payment cards to their customers
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
Less than a third of major Czech retailers offer a loyalty program to their customers
Coalition loyalty programs
Two coalition loyalty programs dominate among Czech retailers
Consumer finance / personal loans
Almost a third of Czech retailers make consumer credit available to their customers
Banking products
Insurance
A handful of Czech retailers have started offering mainstream insurance products
International remittance services
5.0 DENMARK
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
A comparatively high proportion of Danish retailers offer their own payment cards
IKANO and SEB Kort have agreements with multiple retail brands
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
Only a minority of Danish retailers have launched their own loyalty schemes
Coalition loyalty programs
Consumer finance / personal loans
More than a third of Danish retailers enable their customers to take loans at the point-of-sale
Ekspres Bank has established itself as the preferred partner for Danish retailers
Dan-Aktiv possesses a similar operating model to that used by Finaref in France
Banking products / insurance
International remittance services
Consumers in Denmark have the option to send remittances at two major Danish supermarkets
6.0 ESTONIA
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
Only a small proportion of Estonian retailers have developed their own payment cards
Retailer payment cards in Estonia: network and issuer shares, 2009 / 2010
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
Proprietary loyalty schemes are comparatively common in Estonia
Coalition loyalty programs
… with a significant number of retailers adhering to one of the two major coalition schemes
Consumer finance / personal loans
Swedbank operates a near-monopoly on the provision of point-of-sale finance in Estonia
Banking products
Insurance
Estonian retailers have experimented with the provision of insurance products
International remittance services
7.0 FINLAND
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
The number of retailers offering their own cards is lower than in the other Nordic countries
Nordea and Sampo Pankki have the highest number of partnerships for payment cards
Retailer payment cards in Finland: network and issuer shares, 2009 / 2010
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
Proprietary loyalty programs are comparatively popular among Finnish retailers
Coalition loyalty programs
A high proportion of retailers are part of a coalition loyalty scheme linked to a credit card
Plussakortti and S-Etukortti dominate the market for coalition loyalty programs
Consumer finance / personal loans
About one in five Finnish retailers make consumer loans available to their customers
Banking products
Insurance
Accident, dental and life insurance are provided by one Finnish department store chain
International remittance services
Two major Finnish retailers offer the possibility to send money via Western Union
8.0 GERMANY
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
More than a fifth of major German retailers have developed their own payment cards
KarstadtQuelle Bank continues to operate as a major credit card issuer in Germany
Seven German card issuers manage a single major retailer card program each
Amazon’s co-branded card experienced rapid growth following its launch in 2006
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
More than a third of major German retailers offer a proprietary loyalty program
Coalition loyalty programs
There are several significant coalition loyalty programs in Germany
PAYBACK remains the biggest coalition loyalty scheme despite growing competition
DeutschlandCard has grown member numbers rapidly since its launch in 2008
Webmiles is the leading online coalition loyalty scheme in Germany
The decline of Happy Digits followed its abandonment by Karstadt and Deutsche Telekom
Consumer finance / personal loans
The provision of credit by German retailers is driven mainly by deals with external partners
… although three retail brands, including C&A, operate in this field on a captive basis
Eight providers of consumer finance possess more than one retailer partnership
Santander experienced rapid growth in retailer-intermediated consumer credit in 2008
Citibank in Germany will be rebranded as TARGOBANK in February 2010
Hanseatic Bank saw its point-of-sale finance business grow by 17.5% in 2008
Banking products
A limited number of German retailers offer savings or mortgage products
EDEKA Bank appears to be growing in excess of the average for Germany
Insurance
Insurance sales through retailers take place in a climate of legal uncertainty
Retailers offer motor insurance more frequently than any other insurance product
Most retailers offering household insurance opt for single partnerships
hagebaumarkt co-operates with Victoria in the area of accident insurance
Travel insurance is offered less frequently by retailers than other insurance products
Ratio sells life insurance in collaboration with two major underwriters
International remittance services
9.0 HUNGARY
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
Hungarian retailers tend to offer co-branded credit cards rather than debit or pre-paid cards
MasterCard is the preferred network for co-branded retailer cards in Hungary
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
Almost a half of major Hungarian retailers run their own loyalty program
Coalition loyalty programs
Both credit and debit cards have been launched out of the Multipont coalition scheme
Coalition loyalty programs in Hungary: provision rates and program types, 2009 / 2010
Consumer finance / personal loans
The provision of loans by retailers is usually based on agreements with external providers
Banking products
Insurance
Four Hungarian retail chains are active in the distribution of mainstream insurance products
Providers include brokers such as April CEE Development and MAI Insurance Brokers
International remittance services
Two major Hungarian supermarkets make remittance services available to consumers
10.0 LATVIA
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
Only a relatively small number of Latvian retailers offer their own payment cards
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
Eurovaistines stated that it will soon introduce a proprietary loyalty scheme
Coalition loyalty programs
Consumer finance / personal loans
The provision of consumer loans by retailers is above the regional average
Five finance providers hold retail sector distribution partnerships for point-of-sale finance
However, retail sales dropped by almost one third in September 2009
Banking products / insurance
International remittance services
11.0 LITHUANIA
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
Retailer payment cards are more widespread in Lithuania than in either Estonia or Latvia…
… in part as a consequence of their popularity among all major fuel retailing brands
Norfa offers a credit card, a debit card and a pre-paid card
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
Just over a half of major Lithuanian retailers have set up their own loyalty program
Coalition loyalty programs
Two coalition loyalty schemes involving retail brands have been established in Lithuania
Consumer finance / personal loans
Only a small number of Lithuanian retailers make consumer finance available to their customers
Snoras Bank has been affected by the financial crisis in neighbouring Latvia
Banking products / insurance
International remittance services
12.0 NORWAY
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
Close to a third of major retailers in Norway have introduced their own payment card
PayEx harbours ambitions to expand further into the pre-paid card market
DnB NOR and GE Money Bank hold the highest number of partnerships with retailers
The Statoil MasterCard is one of the most widely held co-brands in the Nordic region
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
Most proprietary retailer loyalty cards in Norway currently have no payment function
Coalition loyalty programs
Norges Gruppen plans to introduce a Trumf card with a payment function
Consumer finance / personal loans
Comparatively few major retail brands in Norway offer classic point-of-sale finance…
… although several of those that do make this available through captive entities
Banking products / insurance
International remittance services
13.0 POLAND
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
Over a quarter of major Polish retailers have introduced their own payment cards
The integration of Cetelem into Sygma Bank produces a clear market leader
Alior Bank has acquired the consumer finance and credit card portfolios of HSBC in Poland
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
Most proprietary loyalty schemes identified are linked to a card with no payment function
Coalition loyalty programs
There are four significant coalition schemes involving major retail chains in Poland…
… with two having been introduced in the relatively recent past
Class & Club and Miles & More have a lesser focus on the retail sector
Consumer finance / personal loans
Poland possesses a robust market for point-of-sale finance offered through retailers…
… with KBC’s Zagiel emerging as a market leader in terms of its number of exclusive deals
Lukas Bank is also expanding its number of of retail sector partners in Poland
Stronger competition may come in future from a newly integrated competitor
Banking products / insurance
International remittance services
14.0 SLOVAKIA
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
More than a fifth of major retail chains in Slovakia offer their own payment cards
Cetelem and VÚB are the only card issuers with more than one retail sector partner
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
More than a half of major retailers in Slovakia possess their own proprietary loyalty scheme
Coalition loyalty programs
The concept of coalition loyalty schemes remains to be explored in Slovakia
Consumer finance / personal loans
Many retail chains in Slovakia are active in the provision of consumer loans to their customers
Banking products / insurance
International remittance services
15.0 SWEDEN
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
Most retailer payment cards in Sweden are classifiable as credit or deferred debit cards
Resurs Bank has established partnerships with retailers in a variety of different categories
Statoil’s private label card was phased out in favour of a MasterCard version during 2008
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
Two thirds of proprietary loyalty schemes are linked to a corresponding retailer payment card
Coalition loyalty programs
Several retail chains that are not a part of KF Group have linked with the MedMera Kort
Consumer finance / personal loans
Only a relatively small number of Swedish retailers offer consumer loans to their customers
Finaref has the largest number of partnerships with retailers in a relatively fragmented market
Banking products
Two major Swedish retail groups offer mortgage and savings products
ICA Banken has struck partnerships with other providers in the areas of savings and mortgages
Ikano Bank was reconfigured as a pan-Nordic bank from the beginning of 2009
Insurance
Two major retail brands offer international remittance services through Western Union
International remittance services
16.0 SWITZERLAND
Introduction
Retailer payment cards
A comparatively high proportion of Swiss retailers have introduced their own payment cards
Since July 2007, Accarda has been jointly owned by the Maus Frères Group and Aduna
Cornèr Bank possesses a portfolio of in excess of 900,000 credit cards
Proprietary retailer loyalty programs
More than a half of major Swiss retailers have launched their own loyalty program
Coalition loyalty programs
A comparatively large number of Swiss retailers participate in a coalition loyalty scheme…
… mainly as a result of the fact that there are as many as six schemes of relevance
Through Powercard, MF Group is a significant player in the retailer market
Supercard has itself linked to the Miles & More loyalty scheme
Consumer finance / personal loans
The rate of provision of consumer finance by retail brands is among the lowest in the region
Credit Suisse’s Bank-Now is clearly established as a leader in point-of-sale finance
Banking products
Two groups own banking operations although these are not integrated with the actual shops .
Insurance
Four significant retail chains in Switzerland are active in the distribution of insurance…
… including Fressnapf, which through epona is the only one to offer pet insurance
International remittance services
Naville is the only major retail brand to offer international remittance services in Switzerland
GRAPHICS / TABLES
Customers who bought this item also bought
All rights reserved. © Copyright 2013 Research and Markets WWW4
Terms and Conditions Privacy Policy Publishers Employment Opportunities Site Map Link to us Webmaster Affiliate Network
