Hyundai Card is expanding collaboration among its private-label credit card (PLCC) partners, drawing on its artificial intelligence (AI) and data capabilities. Rather than simply issuing co-branded cards with specific companies, the firm connects its partners' customer touchpoints to create new marketing opportunities.
Hyundai Card has carried out about 4,800 cross-marketing initiatives among its partners to date, according to financial industry sources Tuesday. The company has 16 PLCC partners, including Korean Air, Costco, Hyundai Motor, Kia and Naver. As of April, the combined membership of Hyundai Card and these partners reached approximately 250 million. Hyundai Card regularly holds a PLCC partner council, providing opportunities to discuss collaboration among partners.
Hyundai Card calls this data collaboration framework among PLCC partners "Domain Cosmos." The core feature is that sophisticated cross-marketing is possible without partners directly sharing customer data. Based on data, Hyundai Card matches partners with high mutual relevance and uses AI to select customer groups suited to marketing objectives. The structure reduces companies' concerns about customer data security while enhancing the effectiveness of collaboration among partners.
A representative example is a project to encourage sign-ups for Socar's paid membership service "Passport." Hyundai Card analyzed Socar's target customer groups as men aged 25 to 35, customers active in offline activities, and customers with a high likelihood of using vehicles, then recommended partners with relevant touchpoints. Targeting based on detailed conditions, such as partner members who have experience registering for parking, is also possible.
A promotion to sign up for E-mart's electric vehicle charging membership service "EV Club" is another leading example. Hyundai Card proposed members of automotive and mobility-related partners, including Hyundai Motor, Kia, GS Caltex and Socar, as targets for the sign-up event. It identified customers with data related to electric vehicles, fueling and charging, and connected them to the membership service.
Hyundai Card has a concept called "Inter Cosmos" to link data alliances built in each country and expand into a global network. Sumitomo Mitsui Card Company (SMCC), which introduced "Universe," is also said to be reviewing such a plan. "Going forward, we plan to reorganize into a global data alliance system together with partners who share our vision for data science," a Hyundai Card official said.
