CNBC is reporting Apple was working on a stock trading service where iPhone users could buy and sell shares on the stock market. The service was meant to launch in 2022, but reportedly Apple shelved the plans once interest rates started climbing and the market tanked, fearing Apple users would invest and then lose money.
The service was in development in partnership with Goldman Sachs. The pair switched gears and developed the Apple Card high-yield savings account feature instead, which launched earlier this year and has been very warmly received by users.
CNBC says Apple and Goldman began building the stock trading service in 2020, when retail investing surged in popularity thanks to the likes of apps like Robinhood. Apple saw it as an avenue for iPhone users with spare cash to be able to easily invest their money.
It was targeted to launch in 2022. Of course that did not happen. However, likely not coincidentally, iOS 16 included major updates to the Stocks app which allowed users to organize stocks into watchlists and keep track of upcoming earnings reports. You can see how it’s not too many more steps to turn Stocks from a stock tracker into a fully-fledged trading platform.
The current status of the stock trading project is unknown, according to the CNBC report. As well as ongoing fluctuations in stock market conditions, Goldman Sachs has signaled its intent to exit consumer businesses altogether. (Goldman Sachs has been reportedly looking for a way out of the Apple Card partnership too.)
It’s unclear if Apple could forge ahead anyway, at some point in the future. CNBC says most of the infrastructure for the service is “ready to go”.
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