Walmart's Financial Services Push Includes Metlife

The retailer is selling "life insurance in a box" from the carrier famous for its Snoopy advertising.

Bank Systems & Technology is reporting on Walmart's announcement today of a partnership with American Express on a payment card. However, this is part of a larger move into financial services on the part of the retailer. Earlier this week, the company announced a partnership with MetLife to sell life insurance "in a box." This video from Bloomberg Businessweek is mostly from the Walmart perspective, but offers clues into how far the commoditization of insurance has gone: At one point the analyst notes that Walmart saw this as a product its customers "didn't have access to."

Nathan Golia is senior editor of Insurance & Technology. He joined the publication in 2010 as associate editor and covers all aspects of the nexus between insurance and information technology, including mobility, distribution, core systems, customer interaction, and risk ... View Full Bio