Instant Rewards, Higher ROI: A Blueprint for Credit Card Issuers

For most cardholders, traditional reward programs have felt like “walled gardens.” Customers earn points in closed loops, navigate complex redemption rules, and often abandon them altogether. Increasingly, today’s consumers, juggling multiple reward programs, high thresholds, and confusing conversion charts—view these rewards as digital dead weight.

The real opportunity for issuers lies in transforming loyalty into liquid value: interoperable ecosystems and instant redemption that make points as usable as cash. Done right, this shift not only boosts customer engagement but also delivers measurable ROI for banks and merchants.

The Crisis of Siloed Rewards

As per the SaveSage Credit Card Rewards Behavior Survey 2025 ₍₁₎, the scale of wasted loyalty potential is massive:

• 70% of Indian credit card users fail to optimize their rewards
• 50% let their reward points expire due to lack of awareness or tracking
• 40% are completely unaware of their credit card rewards
• 35% have never redeemed their reward points at all

With over 109 million active credit cards ₍₂₎ and credit-based spending crossing ₹21.16 lakh crore in FY25 ₍₃₎, this represents billions in lost value annually. Points accumulate in digital limbo, frustrating customers and eroding the return on issuer spend.

Interoperability: Breaking Down Barriers

To address this, loyalty is moving toward interoperable ecosystems—networks where customers can pool, exchange, and redeem points across brands.

One landmark example is the Marriott Bonvoy–Flipkart SuperCoins alliance, enabling two-way currency exchange between the world’s largest hospitality loyalty program (248 million members)₍₄₎ and India’s leading e-commerce platform (450 million users)₍₅₎. Together, they touch nearly 700 million consumers.

Other collaborations, such as IndiGo BluChips and Accor Live Limitless, are also in play. These alliances expand choice but still require partner portals or conversion rules. They remain semi-siloed, not yet embedded in everyday payments.

Instant Gratification: “Pay with Rewards”

The next leap is real-time redemption. “Pay with Rewards” technology₍₆₎ integrates loyalty directly at checkout—online or offline. Customers simply select “Pay with Rewards” at the payment page, instantly applying points from any linked program. Whether ordering food on apps, buying event tickets, or shopping in-store, points convert seamlessly into liquid value.

A recent Rewards Survey underscores why this matters: millennials₍₇₎, who make up more than half of new credit card issuances, increasingly prefer rewards over cashbacks. They redeemed over 3 billion points at checkout last year, favoring immediate value over deferred vouchers. For this demographic, seamless, on-demand experiences are non-negotiable.

Case Study in Action: Hyperface × TWID

Hyperface’s strategic partnership with TWID, India’s leading rewards-based payment network, marries granular level customer data with extensive merchant reach to power liquid loyalty at scale. 

Here’s how it works:

• TWID aggregates points across loyalty programs into a unified balance
• At checkout, the customer sees available points and chooses how much to redeem
• The transaction completes in real-time, with no thresholds, delays, or conversion charts₍₅₎

Hyperface’s Smart Engage platform adds another layer by combining advanced user-level analytics with TWID’s vast merchant network of 100,000+ outlets. This allows issuers to offer hyper-personalized offers triggered at the moment of purchase, maximizing both campaign ROI and customer delight.

Engineering Real-Time Engagement

Traditional banking systems weren’t designed for cross-platform, real-time reward processing. Hyperface solves this through an API-first, microservices architecture that allows issuers to:

• Define complex reward rules
• Identify micro customer cohorts 
• Trigger hyper-personalised contextual offers at checkout

By plugging into TWID’s expansive merchant network, this infrastructure gives loyalty true liquidity—making any point spendable, anywhere, anytime.

A Win-Win-Win Model

Issuers: Drive higher engagement and measurable ROI by targeting customers at peak purchase intent.

Merchants: Boost conversion rates and order values with contextual, relevant incentives.

Customers: Enjoy frictionless, genuinely useful rewards that feel like cash—embedded seamlessly into daily transactions.

Looking Ahead

The future of loyalty lies in shifting from retention levers to value-delivery platforms. Interoperable ecosystems with instant redemption will set the standard for customer engagement.

Hyperface and TWID’s partnership offers a blueprint for the next chapter of loyalty—where rewards are intuitive, instant, and genuinely useful.

👉 Want to see how interoperable, real-time rewards can transform your credit card engagement? Contact us today for a demo.