SALT LAKE CITY – February 20, 2025 – Galileo Financial Technologies, SoFi Technologies, Inc.’s Technology Platform (NASDAQ: SOFI), has launched a co-brand debit program offering, enabling brands to offer debit users access to rewards typically reserved for credit card holders. Galileo is the first to bring this type of program offering to the U.S. hospitality sector. While co-brand credit rewards programs are common, debit users have largely been left out—until now.
More than 90 percent of U.S. adults have a debit card, and 45 million U.S. adults either lack a credit history or have only minimal credit activity, preventing them from earning rewards on their everyday purchases and big-ticket items like hospitality and travel.
At a time when launching a co-branded card can drag on for more than a year, Galileo’s program cuts that down to just a few months. Brands, like those in hospitality and travel, can tap Galileo’s technology—including card issuing, processing, Cyberbank Digital and program management—without juggling multiple disconnected systems. This gets them to market faster so they can attract debit-focused consumers and offer them meaningful perks without changing how they spend.
"In the U.S. alone, people spend more than $4 trillion on their debit cards each year, but they aren't getting rewarded for most of that spend," said Derek White, Chief Executive Officer of Galileo. "That’s why we built a program that helps brands launch debit rewards quickly to capture this unmet demand.”
The program will initially focus on the hospitality and travel sectors, leveraging Galileo’s proven capabilities in powering financial solutions for global brands. By enabling airlines, hotels, and other brands to quickly offer loyalty-driven debit cards, Galileo helps boost customer engagement and drive increased spend.
Your Loyalty Program Might Be Ignoring Your Best Customers
For decades, most loyalty programs were built around credit cards. That alignment made sense at a time when revolving credit was the primary lens through which loyalty and rewards were structured. But consumer payment behavior has changed, and Gen Z is making that shift especially visible.
SoFi and Mastercard Partner to Enable SoFiUSD Settlement Across Mastercard’s Global Payments Network
SoFi’s fully reserved U.S. dollar stablecoin will support settlement across the Mastercard network, including for SoFi Bank, N.A. Galileo, SoFi’s technology platform, will be among the first to offer its clients and their issuing banks the choice to settle transactions using SoFiUSD The Mastercard Multi-Token Network will look to support SoFiUSD, help expand interoperability between digital assets and traditional forms of money
Southwest and Galileo Bring Rewards to Debit’s Doorstep
Galileo’s platform integrates issuing, processing, and program management so non-financial brands like Southwest can launch co-branded cards faster. The economics of debit rewards differ from credit, but Galileo CFO Bill Kennedy said technology efficiencies and deeper loyalty make the model sustainable.
United Airlines Launches MileagePlus Debit Rewards Card that Earns Miles for Spending and Saving
This new card allows MileagePlus members to earn miles through everyday purchases and qualifying account balances. Available now with no monthly fees with an average daily account balance of $2,000 or greater, MileagePlus members can open the debit rewards card at UnitedDebitRewards.com
Southwest Airlines, powered by Galileo (SoFi’s tech platform), has launched the Rapid Rewards Debit Card
Southwest Airlines, powered by Galileo (SoFi’s tech platform), has launched the Rapid Rewards Debit Card, letting debit-first customers earn points on everyday purchases to redeem against flights.
