Ally Bank has always had a gap when it comes to credit cards. Way back in 2016, they had a co-brand card with TD Bank, but that folded after a few years. During the pandemic, they planned to acquire CardWorks (owner of Merrick Bank), but that fell through.
Then at the tail end of last year, Ally acquired Fair Square, the issuer of Ollo credit cards. The Ollo cards are invitation only, and aimed at the subprime market. Most notably, at least from our perspective, their card lineup included one of the "unicorn" cards, the Ollo Optimum. Many rebuilders pined for an invitation which would net them 2.5% cashback on everything.
A lot of us were wondering what this acquisition would mean, and we appear to have a partial answer. Ally has 4 new credit cards:
- Ally Platinum MasterCard: A credit builder card, with no rewards but access to a FICO score (unsure which), and a promise of regular CLI reviews
- Ally Everyday Rewards MasterCard: 3% back on gas, groceries, and drugstores
- Ally Unlimited Rewards MasterCard: A 2% back on everything card
- Ally Unlimited Rewards MasterCard for Nurses and Educators: Seems identical to the basic Unlimited card, except with a choice of two short logos
While all the cards are linked from Ally's home page, there doesn't seem to be a big announcement, and they're all invitation only, so this appears to be a soft rollout.
They all have a very similar, minimalistic appearance, with only the word "Ally", the chip, the MasterCard logo, and the tap-to-pay symbol on the front (plus "Educators Inspire" or "Nurses Care" for their fourth card). The cards are monocolor or subtly gradiated purple (Platinum), gray (Everyday), or black (Unlimited). I think they're quite attractive.They're not using the Ollo branding.
Most basic features seem identical across all their cards, with no earnings caps, no redemption minimums, and the rewards don't expire. They also have no fees for returned payments, no fees for going over their limits, and no rake hikes after a missed payment. This seems to be generally in line with Ally Bank's philosophy of no or minimal fees.
Some basic information is missing, with no mention of annual fees, late payment fees, foreign transaction fees, APR ranges, SUBs, and so on. Though they've apparently partnered with Bankrate, because invitations are available though their CardMatch program, and they published two articles (article one, article two) with some additional details. (Note the articles contradict each other, in some minor details.) According to BR, all the cards have no FTF (or only the Platinum), offer a CLI review after 6 months (or only the Platinum, after 5 on-time payments), the only method of redemption is statement credit, they have an APR of 28.99% (or 17.99% to 28.99%), and they may offer a 0% APR for 15 months SUB in the future. The Platinum is aimed at those with fair to good credit, and has no AF, though there are fees for BTs and cash advances. There are two different versions of the Everyday, one with no AF and one with a $39 AF. The Unlimited card is "reserved for Ally customers with high credit scores", and weirdly promotes an ability to freeze your card as if that was some premium feature.
Overall, my impression is that Ally isn't trying to outcompete with the big issuers with benefits. Instead, they're aiming to provide simple no-fuss and low-fee cards with decent if not groundbreaking rewards. Their cards range all the way from subprime to superprime, so they're trying to have cards for everyone. There's nothing there to appeal to optimizers, but they might be useful for rebuilders or those new to credit -- we'll have to see how they are with account reviews, CLIs, and generally providing a ladder up.
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