Carbon footprint tracking debit card launches in UK

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
Mar 16, 2022

A new consumer debit card that tracks the carbon footprint of every purchase has been rolled out. Called Ekko, it's part of a new financial ecosystem that includes a “transformative” app and debit card.

As consumers look to tap into a surge in demand for sustainable financial products, the Ekko card will allow users “to gauge the impact of every tap of the card using data drawn from the supply chain”.

In reality that means for every five taps of the card, one of Ekko’s partner organisations removes a bottle from the ocean, and for every 50 taps a tree is planted.

It’s the brainchild of Ekko co-founder and CEO Oli Cook. A former executive at both Metro Band and HSBC, he says the card will now allow shoppers to “start making a tangible difference in how they live their everyday lives”.

He told City AM: “We care about climate change and we wanted to do more about it. But we were struggling to to do our bit – we do our recycling, we reduce our driving, and we do all those things, but we didn’t really know what our own impact was. That was quite demotivating.”

He said the new card remedies that by allowing users to win back rewards to tackle climate change and keep track of their impact via an app. 

“We’re enabling our customers to make a positive change and this is the first step as we continue to make saving the planet easier for customers and soon businesses,” Cook said.

The new card comes as demand for sustainable finance products swells with 60% of consumers now demanding higher sustainability in financial products, according to a report by consultancy firm PA.