New startup helps credit card users maximize rewards and savings

Overwhelmed with credit card options and obscure information, four young co-founders started Eclipse, which just released a new product to help users manage their finances and maximize rewards.

Co-founder, Mingchung Xia, a third-year computer science student at the University of Waterloo and his high school friends, Krish Kodali, Luke Wang and Nathan Chao, created a smart digital wallet that recommends the best card to use at every payment and provides personalized card suggestions, like Apple Pay but with more advanced features.

Hailing from Halifax, Mingchung Xia co-developed Eclipse with high school friends, based on their experience with opening their first-ever credit card.

In the newest update, people can upload their memberships, loyalties and gift cards to further enhance their transactions and discover the cards that community members trust in Eclipse's social space. “Our goal is to help people easily manage, understand and use their credit cards,” Xia says. The group came up with this idea based on their own financial experience.

“When we turned 18, we were looking into opening our first credit card, but we realized that there’s so many options. There’s so much information that's difficult to digest,” he says. “We felt it was even more difficult to manage and use a lot of credit cards. This is why we wanted to build Eclipse — to make the entire credit card process easy, not just for us, but for everyone.”

The team researched and built a database of Canadian and American credit cards, including their custom point values for different stores and shopping categories such as food or gas. The app uses machine learning algorithms to rank each card based on its maximum value, particularly points values and multipliers.

Unlike other fintech apps, Eclipse does not require any bank connection or personal information like a pin number. Coining this as an “information-first approach,” Eclipse asks the user to provide their current cards. Since the app is powered by a database, it would know each card’s properties. Similarly, Eclipse does not track a user’s location. To create real-time card recommendations, it uses the phone’s existing location permissions. It only uses the location's name, so someone's location never goes through the servers. Overall, this app can help people manage their finances without compromising their privacy and security.

“If you ever felt like you've missed out on a lifetime of free flights or groceries, all because you used the wrong card, Eclipse alerts users of credit card rewards and cashback the minute they step into the store,” Xia says. “Users can also pre-plan their purchases by using Eclipse’s map feature to look up stores and see their most suggested card.”  

Another feature is that users can add notes to each of their cards, such as payment dates or contact information. With the average adult having three to four credit cards, it’s often difficult and frustrating to keep track of each card’s properties. As a result, Eclipse can save time and effort, by automatically choosing the best credit card for every transaction and sending payment reminders.

According to market research conducted by Eclipse, users can save over $1,000 a year with the app.

Eclipse could also streamline credit card applications, which often require hours of research.  When someone creates an account, they are prompted to enter their income range, credit score and travel preferences. Eclipse then provides personalized recommendations on new credit cards.

The app uses various statistical algorithms to filter out cards that do not satisfy someone’s financial profile.

“If you have a poor credit score, you wouldn't be recommended something like an American's Express platinum card,” Xia says. Similarly, users wouldn’t be advised to obtain cards that are outside their income level. If someone is an avid traveler, Eclipse will suggest cards with stronger foreign exchange rates or have high travel point multipliers. In the future, the team would like to curate recommendations based on a user’s financial habits and goals.

Eclipse has various features that can save hours of research in finding a card that suits your needs. The Eclipse’s social space allows community members to review various cards (left). People can use the Explore Page (middle) or the Card Wiki feature (right) to find all important information of a prospective credit card like annual fees or special offers.  

Eclipse is Xia’s first venture. He launched it as part of Waterloo’s Enterprise Co-op (E Co-op) program, which allows students to start a venture while earning co-op credit. Eclipse was also supported by Velocity, Waterloo’s flagship incubator that provides coaching and resources for students interested in building a business and curious about entrepreneurship.

“One of the biggest advantages of being a student is time and tolerance to try new things. It's going to be difficult to find time to do something like build a startup in the future, especially if you're working a nine-to-five job. So, if you are a student and you have an idea, it's more than worth it to take the risk now,” Xia says.

“Another thing is that the team you choose is important since they are the people that you'll learn, grow, and spend a lot of time with.”

Eclipse is available for download on the Apple App Store, with plans to release an Android version soon.