It looks as if all of the controversy surrounding Bank of America’s decision to offer credit cards to illegal immigrants has not scared other banks away from the idea. In fact, Wells Fargo & Co has recently announced that it just might be jumping on the bandwagon.
Well now, doesn’t that sound charitable?
When I read that quote, I couldn’t help but chuckle. Now, I am not saying that I am for or against the idea of offering credit cards to people without social security numbers. Whether or not the government is going to allow such a practice remains to be seen, particularly since the practice does seem to specifically target illegal immigrants. But, when companies like Bank of America and Wells Fargo try to make it sound as if they are introducing a product solely for the purpose of bettering the lives of others, my cynical side comes a crawling.
There is no way that Wells Fargo is considering this move in order to be the “good guy” to help uplift the financially downtrodden in order to achieve the American dream. This decision is all about market opportunity and making money for the company. Period, paragraph, end of story.
Sure, it makes for a nice marketing campaign, but the fact is that illegal immigrants are a huge, untapped market that the credit card companies are hoping to exploit. Don’t get me wrong, being able to obtain a credit card is certainly going to provide immigrants and the migrant workforce with more opportunities and freedom. There’s no doubt about it. But looking past the obvious marketing-speak of the Wells Fargo and Bank of America campaigns, this push into this relatively untapped market is what Adam Smith would refer to as “profit motive”. So let’s just call it for what it is.
As far back as May of 2001, Wells Fargo introduced the Matricula Consular, which is a Mexican ID card that can be used to open bank accounts. To date, the bank has opened over 1 million accounts with the Matricula. Just imagine how much money the company can make on interest charges if only half of these account holders decide to “go for the American dream” by opening up a credit card account.
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