{"id":148304,"date":"2025-09-16T21:35:08","date_gmt":"2025-09-16T21:35:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/148304\/"},"modified":"2025-09-16T21:35:08","modified_gmt":"2025-09-16T21:35:08","slug":"cashrewardss-abrupt-closure-leaves-shoppers-many-unanswered-questions-heres-what-we-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/148304\/","title":{"rendered":"Cashrewards’s abrupt closure leaves shoppers many unanswered questions. Here’s what we know"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cashrewards \u2014 a loyalty program which once had 2.5 million Australians in its database \u2014 has left many shoppers stunned after its abrupt shutdown last week.<\/p>\n

The cashback website pays back its members a percentage of the purchase price in cash after they shop in its partnered retailers.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Its closure has also left many questions:<\/p>\n

How do these cashback companies operate and make profits?Can consumers get their money back from their accounts?Are there alternatives?Should we be cautious about using cashback apps?<\/p>\n

Let’s find out.<\/p>\n

Why did Cashrewards close down?<\/p>\n

At this stage, we don’t know.<\/p>\n

Neither Cashrewards, nor ANZ Bank’s venture capital fund 1835i, which owns the cashback app, have made any public statements.<\/p>\n

According to the Australian Financial Review, Cashrewards was failing to meet ANZ’s expectations, amid a wider review of the bank’s performance and profitability by its new chief executive, Nuno Matos.<\/p>\n

What to do with your funds?<\/p>\n

Cashrewards has urged its members to withdraw their funds<\/a> by October 24 and submit any transaction queries by October 10.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Cashrewards members are urged to withdraw their funds by October 24. (Getty Images: Brent Lewin\/Bloomberg)<\/p>\n

When asked what would happen to the money if it remained unclaimed, Cashrewards’ CEO Anthony Seymour-Walsh tells the ABC that the company “intends to repay all customer monies”.<\/p>\n

Customers will have their available funds automatically transferred to the linked bank account if they miss the October deadline, according to Cashrewards’ website.<\/p>\n

All withdrawal claims must be received by December 12, it said.<\/p>\n

How do cash back companies make money?<\/p>\n

Cashback offers were essentially a form of discounting, said Andrew Brennan, a senior lecturer at Curtin University’s Faculty of Business and Law.<\/p>\n

“Gaining a large member base, and therefore generating more sales for the retail partners, is good for profitability,” Dr Brennan told the ABC.<\/p>\n

“Cashback advertising schemes refer a shopper to the retailer and make a commission from the retailer every time a transaction is completed.”<\/p>\n

Using cashback apps wisely can help with the cost of living, but they also come with the possibility of overspending, according Dr Brennan.<\/p>\n

“Everyone loves a discount, and it makes us feel good, with more money left over for other things to buy or we can put away for savings,” he said.<\/p>\n

\"Two<\/p>\n

Shoppers are warned that cashback apps are a double-edged sword. \u00a0 (AAP: Jane Dempster)<\/p>\n

“If you buy products or items you would normally buy anyway, then a discount might be worthwhile to you.<\/p>\n

“[However], you might buy something on impulse because it is advertised within the app as a ‘limited time offer’.<\/p>\n

“You could end up spending more in total on goods you might not even need.”<\/p>\n

He added that exercising self-control was key.<\/p>\n

Are there alternatives?<\/p>\n

There are five cashback apps and sites to consider, including Cashrewards, which ranked as the top option, according to financial research agency Canstar.<\/p>\n

Cashback apps reward users with free money \u2013 but at what cost?<\/a><\/p>\n

Viona is a cashback app user who has earned hundreds of dollars in cashback, but a consumer advocacy group is warning of privacy risks.<\/p>\n

The agency’s data insights director, Sally Tindall, said the sudden closure of Cashrewards left millions of shoppers scrambling to figure out what’s next.<\/p>\n

“For those with uncashed rewards, the immediate priority is to get your funds out by the October 24 deadline,” she said.<\/p>\n

“While it’s a shame to see an Aussie-owned cashback pioneer disappear, there are other similar brands still kicking around, such as ShopBack and TopCashback.<\/p>\n

“Just be sure to read the terms and conditions and make sure you’re not spending more just because of the lure of money back.<\/p>\n

“Remember, what matters most is the price you pay, not how big the discount or cashback is.”What about privacy data?<\/p>\n

To set up a cashback account, you need to first sign up as a member by providing your personal details, including your name, email address, and phone number.<\/p>\n

As of September 8, Cashrewards had 2.5 million Australians signed up for its service.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/p>\n

Customers are advised to be mindful of what private data they share with cashback companies. (Getty Images: Jaap Arriens\/NurPhoto)<\/p>\n

“[Cashrewards] customer data will be held encrypted in a secure state for regulatory purposes and destroyed safely at the conclusion of any statutory period,” Mr Seymour-Walsh said.<\/p>\n

“Members who request their data to be deleted will be actioned accordingly.”<\/p>\n

Dr Brennan said that with free apps, customers need to be informed and comfortable with what kind of data was given away.<\/p>\n

“Customers win by getting discounts with their viewing and buying habits recorded and tracked within the cashback app\/website itself,” he said.<\/p>\n

“But it is also a win for the retailers as they gain insights for marketing.”\"A<\/p>\n

Australian consumers are warned that there is a price to be paid for free cashback apps.\u00a0 (AAP: Sam Mooy)<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this as consumers?<\/p>\n

“Clearly, these apps are popular amongst consumers due to the discounts they offer,” Dr Brennan said.<\/p>\n

“Competition is usually a good thing for consumers, in the form of lower prices, decent rewards and potentially a better service offering.<\/p>\n

“There is one less competitor now, with Cashrewards no longer supported.<\/p>\n

“Even though these cashback apps are ‘free’, there is a price for consumers in terms of privacy data being collected.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Cashrewards \u2014 a loyalty program which once had 2.5 million Australians in its database \u2014 has left many…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":148305,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[100031,67804,64,63,99,8879,100029,100030,30164,7135,100032],"class_list":["post-148304","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-1835i","tag-anz-bank","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-business","tag-cash","tag-cashback","tag-cashrewards","tag-consumers","tag-discount","tag-money-back"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148304","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=148304"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148304\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/148305"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=148304"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=148304"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=148304"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}