Marqeta is a global card issuing platform.

Global card issuer Marqeta (NASDAQ: MQ) has tied up with Google Pay to offer a new virtual payment card that expands its users’ ability to use their mobile wallet for purchases at more merchants, both online and in-store. (BusinessWire)

The new virtual Google Pay balance card, powered by Marqeta, is a virtual card that is tokenized into the users’ mobile wallets. The virtual card can now be used to make purchases directly utilizing the user’s Google Pay balance. This is a new functionality – earlier Google Pay users could only use their balance for person-to-person payments, Google (NASDAQ: GOOGL)-related purchases, or for transfer to a bank account.

“The power of modern card issuing is being able to embed a card into an app like Google Pay and create completely new vectors of commerce that change how consumers relate to their money,” said Jason Gardner, founder and CEO of Marqeta, in a statement. “Marqeta’s modern card issuing platform is designed to be able to help the world’s most innovative companies execute game-changing products at scale, and it’s hard to find a company that embodies this more than Google.”

Fintech Marqeta was listed on the Nasdaq in June at a valuation of about $15 billion.

Google Pay functionality

The Google Pay app, which was revamped completely earlier this year, now works with more than 3,000 banks in the US. In June Google Pay announced that COVID vaccination cards could be saved and displayed on Android starting with select providers in the US.

“We are always looking for ways to make Google Pay more helpful to our users,” said Tarun Bhatnagar, VP, Payments Americas, Google Pay. “By working with Marqeta, we can give our users another way to spend the funds in their Google Pay balance, making it even easier to pay for everyday items.”

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