Morning Scan: Credit Cards Seek Merchants for Partnerships; Starbuck...

Wall Street Journal

Loyalty trumps lucrativeness, at least for the time being, in the world of credit cards. Issuers like American Express, JPMorgan Chase and Commerce Bancshares in Kansas City are all picking up the pace in securing co-branded partnerships with merchants. The reason? Some merchants' customer bases are deemed more loyal, even if they generate less fee income, and a partnership with a merchant is a considered a more efficient way to grow a customer...