Plastic cards with vertical designs. From old to new!

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif.—Should credit unions consider reissuing their plastic cards with vertical designs?

A literal shift is occurring, with a growing number of issuers adopting vertical, or portrait, designs on their cards due to consumers now dipping their chips or tapping their cards at the point of sale. The vertical designs better mimic how customers typically handle their cards when dipping or tapping, according to advocates.

The change, most popular with younger consumers, is worth CUs’ attention.

But decisions regarding the design change will be influenced by costs, members’ payments habits and demographics, and the number of card not present transactions within the portfolio each month, experts say.

PayPal recently joined several other banks in releasing credit and debit cards with vertical designs for its Venmo app.

“The vertical cards will make for a smoother user experience, as they will mimic how customers typically handle their cards when they either tap to pay or dip the card into the chip reader vertically,” Business Insider said.

Daniela Jorge, VP at PayPal, told Bloomberg the company's new vertical orientation was inspired by TikTok and Instagram. "The world around us is becoming more of the portrait mode and the vertical orientation," Jorge said.

Just a Note: Hotels have been using vertical cards for years! It makes it easier for the user to know how to insert the card.