A decoupled debit card is a debit card that is not issued by, and not tied to, a particular retail financial institution, such as a bank

Bank

A bank is a financial institution that serves as a financial intermediary. The term "bank" may refer to one of several related types of entities:...

 or credit union

Credit union

A credit union is a cooperative financial institution that is owned and controlled by its members and operated for the purpose of promoting thrift, providing credit at competitive rates, and providing other financial services to its members...

. In May 2007, Capital One

Capital One

Capital One Financial Corp. is a U.S.-based bank holding company specializing in credit cards, home loans, auto loans, banking and savings products...

 began a one year decoupled debit card experiment . This card was novel in that prior to this launch, a debit card was always tied to a traditional financial institution. Capital One's Mastercard-branded decoupled card did not require an account be opened with a retail financial institution, and was made in partnership with the Ukrops grocery chain, based in CapOne's hometown of Richmond, VA. The card was also tied to a reward program offered by Ukrops. That one-year experiment ended in May 2008, and has been followed up with a national rollout of its own version of a decoupled debit card tied to its own reward program.

External links

• Capital One's debit card (this card is no longer being offered)