Wallaby Combines All Your Credit Cards Into One, Makes Sure You Earn The Most Rewards

Wallaby, which is launching its beta today, reminds me a bit of banking startup Simple. Just like Simple automatically manages your finances for you and automatically shuffles your money between the most lucrative debit and savings accounts, Wallaby combines all of your existing credit cards onto one card and then decides which of your credit card accounts to route your transactions to based on where you can get the most frequent flyer miles or cashback bonuses.

Wallaby, which is backed MuckerLab, a TechStars Network accelerator in Santa Monica, CA, provides you with a single physical credit card and digital wallet. First you register all your physical cards with Wallaby and then, when you want to pay for gas, for example, it will automatically use the card that gives you triple miles for gas purchases. Later, when you use the card at a restaurant, it will automatically route payments to the rewards card in your digital wallet that gives you a 5% cashback bonus in restaurants.

Besides the automatic mode, users can also designate which percentage of their spending should go to which card. A companion mobile app will allow users to change their preferences anytime.

The company says that almost 90% of U.S. consumers now carry rewards cards and most people find these credit card rewards programs confusing. Wallaby, on the other hand, says founder and CEO Matthew Goldman, makes it “easy for people to earn the most rewards by channeling spending toward the best card for each transaction, making sure each consumer gets the most from their credit cards’ annual fees.”

I’ve seen a few design studies and products that aim to do something similar, but I’m not aware of another product that combines a physical card with the intelligent backend that Wallaby promises.

There are obviously pros and cons to using credit cards to begin with, but if you do use credit cards – especially ones that come with frequent flyer or cashback rewards – Wallaby is probably worth a look.

The first 1,000 users to sign up for the company’s beta, by the way, will receive a lifetime membership benefit and the next 5,000 users will get a free card for 12 months. New users beyond these first beta users will receive six months of free service. After that, Wallaby will cost $50 per year.