Thread: Target Redcard: The Canadian Version

Well with Target opening their first stores in Canada pretty soon, it's obvious that they're going to have their own redcard over there as well. I looked at the version Canada is getting and I'm a little jealous because it's a little better than what we have right now in the U.S. for a couple of reasons:

1. Canada is getting a Mastercard version that can be used anywhere. In the U.S., it is only a store card version right now.

2. Because of reason #1, you can get a 0.5% cash back on purchases outside of Target that you can redeem for a Target gift card (has to accumulate to at least $10 though.) I know a 0.5% is barely anything but at least it encourages you to use it outside of one place.

3. It has EMV Chip + PIN. I know it's not a huge deal, but I think it's still pretty cool.

More info: http://www.target.ca/en/redcard/rbc-...rd?lnk=content
http://www.rbcroyalbank.com/credit-c...astercard.html

It's also issued by RBC. In the US, Target runs its own "bank."

Canadia, eh????

Chip + PIN is standard in Canada for both debit and credit. Interac, the debit network used across Canada (backed by 4 of Canada's "big 5" and the largest credit union in Canada), demands the use of Chip + PIN, so nearly all readers will take EMV, and nearly all cards are Chip + PIN because of this. EMV chips are required for all ATM transactions presently, and EMV will be required for all point-of-sale transactions by 2015; most Canadian retailers' codes of conduct that I know of will reject cards (debit or credit) that lack EMV; some will even reject Chip + Sign (for technical reasons; offline readers are starting to get popular in the places I go to...).

The Target RedCard MasterCard is RBC's second MasterCard offering, after the WestJet MC; previously, the only one of the "big 5" that issued MC was BMO. The RBC standard for most credit cards (both Canadian and US) is that all "no annual fee" cards like this one is 0.5% in rewards; only the student cards and the annual fee ones give out 1% rewards.

The Target 5% discount only works for Target stores in Canada, not the US. But at least you can use it in the US... if it weren't for the crippling exchange rate and FTFs...

Still, kudos for Target on getting a real bank to handle the RedCard rather than doing it themselves. One thing I found in the US to be annoying is that there are so many private processing networks alongside the "big 4". With Interac so popular in Canada, I get the distinct impression that if it isn't "big 5 + 1", it's not worth getting.

Originally Posted by kelvSYC

One thing I found in the US to be annoying is that there are so many private processing networks alongside the "big 4".

The big four transaction networks for credit cards in the US are MC, Visa, Discover and Amex. There is little competition beyond that.

As for interbank/debit networks, there are a bunch of them. Some networks, like MoneyPass, offer fee-free transactions. Some debit networks are owned by credit networks. (Star is owned by Visa, Maestro by MC and Pulse by Discover.)

From Wikipedia: "In the U.S., EFTPOS is universally referred to simply as debit. The same interbank networks that operate the ATM network also operate the POS network. Most interbank networks, such as Pulse, NYCE, MAC, Tyme, SHAZAM, STAR, and so on, are regional and do not overlap, however, most ATM/POS networks have agreements to accept each other's cards. This means that cards issued by one network will typically work anywhere they accept ATM/POS cards for payment. For example, a NYCE card will work at a Pulse POS terminal or ATM, and vice versa. Many debit cards in the United States are issued with a Visa, MasterCard or American Express logo allowing use of their signature-based networks."

So even though there quite a few networks, I've never had an issue using any of my debit cards anywhere.