CORA Loyalty, the loyalty portfolio arm of CORA Group, is advising financial institutions to transition from product-based rewards to comprehensive enterprise loyalty strategies by 2026, aiming to recognize and reward the entirety of a customer’s banking relationship.
The push for enterprise loyalty comes as rewards programs face increasing competition and funding challenges. Traditionally, loyalty benefits have relied on interchange revenue, a model now under global pressure. Furthermore, singular product rewards, such as debit card-based programs, have shown limitations in delivering sustainable returns and maintaining top-of-wallet status for financial institutions.
Loyalty leaders are therefore shifting from card-centric approaches to campaigns focused on the overall customer relationship. This strategy involves rewarding customers for a range of activities across the institution, including maintaining checking accounts, paying account fees, utilizing credit and debit cards, engaging in regular transactions, and fostering long-term relationships. This applies to retail clients, small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), and commercial customers alike. The objective extends beyond increasing card spend to achieving broader outcomes such as growing deposits, encouraging treasury management adoption, and strengthening the full banking relationship.
Enterprise loyalty also suggests extending recognition and incentives beyond customers to include employees and strategic vendors, enhancing overall impact. To sustain competitive levels of point issuance, CORA Loyalty highlights the importance of partner-funded rewards. Partnerships with entities like airlines, retailers, grocery chains, gas stations, and food delivery services can subsidize rewards, bringing relevance and frequency to everyday purchases while making points feel more tangible and timely.
Beth McCoy, CEO of CORA Loyalty, commented, “Enterprise loyalty is about recognizing the whole relationship, not just rewarding a single transaction. This year, the financial institutions that win will be the ones that see themselves in a uniquely central position across a large ecosystem, rewarding not just customers, but also employees and vendors, and leveraging partner-funded rewards to sustain engagement. Loyalty becomes the catalyst to deepen deposits, expand services, and strengthen long-term relationships.”
CORA Group, the parent organization of CORA Loyalty, is a collective organization focused on the acquisition, strengthening, and growth of over 30 independent software brands globally. With roots in construction and food service, its operations have expanded to include debt collection & recovery, wine/spirits, moving/storage, loyalty, legal, and long-term care verticals. The group currently serves over 50,000 customers across more than 10 markets with enterprise software and related services. CORA Group operates as one of the primary operating groups under Jonas Software, a subsidiary of Constellation Software Inc.
