Bilt's new credit cards will feature 10% interest rate, meeting bipartisan call for lower card rates

NEW YORK (AP) — Fintech giant Bilt announced an overhaul of its credit cards on Wednesday, which notably will include an introductory rate on all card users’ interest rates at 10% for one year.

The promotion comes at a time of heightened political rhetoric around the cost of credit cards, with President Donald Trump announcing last week that he also is seeking a one-year cap on credit card interest rates of 10%.

New York-based Bilt, which originally built its business model around earning rewards on rent and other routine purchases, has been branching out into other financial products as its grown. The privately held company, backed by several Venture Capital and pension funds, was valued last year at $10.75 billion and has been expanding its partnerships with landlords. It's starting to build in rewards programs for other routine transactions, like a customer’s mortgage payment. The company says roughly 1 in 4 landlords accept Bilt and the company says Bilt is now the largest reporter of on-time rental payments to credit bureaus.

In an interview, Bilt CEO Ankur Jain said Bilt was deciding to cap its interest rates on credit cards for one year to meet the “bipartisan call for a solution” on the issues of affordability that he says many of his customers are facing. Candidly, Jain also said it could also be a chance to lure in new customers.

“If (a credit card rate cap) is going to happen, we’d rather be at the forefront,” Jain said.

The 10% rate applies as an introductory annual percentage rate on new eligible purchases for the first 12 months for cardholders approved for one of Bilt’s three new cards. After that, purchases, balance transfers and cash advances carry APRs that can run well above 20%, similar to other rewards cards.

The credit card industry has long pushed back against any caps on interest rates on its products, with the average credit card interest rate hovering around 21%. They have faced their most serious challenge yet with Trump, who has embraced the populist idea of capping credit card interest rates for one year. Researchers at Vanderbilt University estimated that Trump’s proposal would cost the credit card industry $100 billion. Left-leaning politicians like Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders have long embraced capping credit card rates.

Bilt is effectively offering its new and existing customers a promotional rate; not unlike other promotions the credit card industry does to attract new customers like a zero percent APR or promotions for customers who transfer balances. But the announcement by Bilt, being small relative to the giants JPMorgan Chase, Capital One and American Express, may have political ramifications, Politicians can now point to Bilt voluntarily capping interest rates for all its customers and ask why its larger competitors are unable or unwilling to embrace the same move.

The new credit cards from Bilt, which were unveiled at the top of the World Trade Center on Wednesday, follows the “good, better, best” model that other credit card companies have adopted. The center of the program is Bilt Cash, which is a points program that converts into cash back inside the Bilt ecosystem. These are often merchants that have signed up with Bilt to help attract customers in the local area. Bilt is also keeping its transfer partners with several airlines and hotels through its Bilt Rewards points program.

At the top end of Bilt’s new credit card program is the Bilt Palladium Card, with a $495 annual fee, will give $400 annual credits toward hotel stays as well as $200 in Bilt Cash. The middle tier card will be the Bilt Obsidian Card, which focuses more of its rewards accumulation on dining out and grocery purchases and carries a $95 annual fee. The basic card will be called the Bilt Blue Card, which has no annual fee, but will also offer cash back and points accumulation, but at lower multiples compared to the annual fee cards.

Bilt is trying to move beyond its “credit card for renters” identity and focus more on being a financial liaison between local merchants, landlords and renters in the area. Bilt previously partnered with Wells Fargo on its credit card program, but that partnership is coming to an end in February in what appears to have been an acrimonious divorce. Wells Fargo apparently lost $10 million a month on the Bilt credit card, The Wall Street Journal previously reported, and chose to end its partnership several years before it was supposed to expire in 2029.

The new card is being issued in a partnership with credit card operations company Cardless, while the bank Column N.A. will be the issuing bank.

Bilt Rewards CEO Ankur Jain speaks during an event on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ken Sweet)

Bilt Obsidian Card, Palladium Card and Blue Card are shown on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026 in New York. (AP Photo/Ken Sweet)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Wednesday made a vague statement that he’s been told “on good authority” that plans for executions in Iran have stopped, even as Tehran has indicated fast trials and executions ahead in its crackdown on protesters.

The U.S. president’s claims, which were made with few details, come as he’s told protesting Iranians in recent days that “help is on the way” and that his administration would “act accordingly” to respond to the Iranian government. But Trump has not offered any details about how the U.S. might respond and it wasn’t clear if his comments Wednesday indicated he would hold off on action.

“We’ve been told that the killing in Iran is stopping -- it’s stopped -- it’s stopping,” Trump said at the White House while signing executive orders and legislation. “And there’s no plan for executions, or an execution, or executions -- so I’ve been told that on good authority.”

Trump did not specify where he had received that information but only described it as “very important sources on the other side.”

Trump said he would “find out” later if it was true, but he didn't explain how.

“I hope it’s true," he said. "Who knows?”

When asked if that meant he was not planning to take any action against the Iranian government, Trump said: “We’re going to watch it and see what the process is. But we were given a very good statement by people that are aware of what’s going on.”

The president on Tuesday consulted with his national security team about next steps after telling reporters he believed the killing in Iran was “significant.”

Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and key White House National Security Council officials began meeting last Friday to develop options for Trump, ranging from a diplomatic approach to military strikes.

The Iranian security force crackdown on the demonstrations has killed at least 2,586, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported.

On Wednesday, Iranian officials signaled that suspects detained in nationwide protests would face fast trials and executions while the Islamic Republic promised a “decisive response” if the U.S. or Israel intervene in the domestic unrest.

The threats emerged as some personnel at a key U.S. military base in Qatar were advised to evacuate by Wednesday evening following Trump’s escalated warnings of potential military action over the killing of peaceful demonstrators.

Mohammad Pakpour, commander of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, reiterated Iranian claims, without providing evidence, that the U.S. and Israel have instigated the protests and that they are the real killers of protesters and security forces who have died in the turmoil, according to Iran’s semiofficial Tasnim news agency.

He added that those countries will “receive the response in the appropriate time.”

Earlier Wednesday, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, Iran’s judiciary chief, said the government must act quickly to punish more than 18,000 people who have been detained through rapid trials and executions. Mohseni-Ejei’s comments about rapid trials and executions were made in a video shared by Iranian state television online.

“If we want to do a job, we should do it now. If we want to do something, we have to do it quickly,” he said. “If it becomes late, two months, three months later, it doesn’t have the same effect. If we want to do something, we have to do that fast.”

The comments stand as a direct challenge to Trump, who warned Iran about executions in an interview with CBS aired Tuesday. “If they do such a thing, we will take very strong action,” Trump said.

Amiri reported from New York.

A man stands with his motorbike in front of a huge banner showing hands holding Iranian flags as a sign of patriotism, in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

President Donald Trump gestures as he walks from Marine One after arriving on the South Lawn of the White House, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)