Wallaby wants to consolidate your wallet

Why fill your wallet with a dozen cards when one can do all the work?

Are you tired of playing the card game where you debate which credit card to plop down based on which one has the best rewards and the most available credit? I know I am. And this is why I am intrigued by a new company launching today that claims to be able to track all of your cards and spending preferences and consolidates it into one card that transmits the transaction to the appropriate credit or debit card.

This new company, fresh out of the MuckerLab, Wallaby combines all of your existing credit cards onto one card and then decides which of your credit card to route your transactions to.

The young Santa Monica company provides you with a single physical credit card and digital wallet where you register all of the cards you wish and allocate which ones you want to use for gas purchases, retail purchases and grocery purchases, then when you swipe the Wallaby card it will automatically route payments to the rewards card in your digital wallet that gives the best rewards.

The service also has a companion mobile app that also lets you override the defaults on the spot so you can take advantage of other deals on the spot.

And since it can be hard to remember on the spot which card is giving cash back for groceries right now, Wallaby thinks that creating defaults will get people the most rewards for their spending.

The first 1,000 users to sign up for the company’s beta will receive a lifetime membership benefit and the next 5,000 users will get a free card for twelve months. New users beyond these first beta users will receive six months of free service. After that, Wallaby will cost $50 per year.

"Wallaby is the first service that brings together a new combination of a flexible, cloud-based wallet and an intelligent, connected physical credit card that can be used at any location," said Matthew Goldman, founder and CEO of Wallaby, in a statement. "We know from primary research that 90% of consumers carry rewards cards and 70% of them agree that credit card rewards programs are confusing. We are making it easy for people to earn the most rewards by channeling spending toward the best card for each transaction, making sure each consumer gets the most from their credit card annual fees. What makes this really great is that we do this behind the scenes, with zero effort or change in normal behavior required by the user."

Wallaby also supports card linked offers, allowing retailers to provider social and loyalty promotions to consumers without the need for point-of-sale modifications or in-store training. Wallaby cardholders benefit from additional savings on top of their rewards earnings automatically when they use their Wallaby Card.

If this system really is as easy as it sounds, it could really lighten my wallet substantially and allow me the breeze of just pocketing an ID and a single card -- and I am always for leaving my wallet at home.