Dive Brief:

• Venmo, the peer-to-peer payments app, announced on its blog Tuesday that it's implementing a rewards program, which will offer Venmo cardholders automatic cash back for purchases made with the card at various retailers. 

• For a limited time,​ Venmo cardholders can earn 5% cash back at Target, Papa Johns, Chevron and Sephora as well as earn 4% cash back at Sam's Club and Dunkin. New offers will be added as others expire, which can be viewed through the app's card settings section, according to the release. ​

• Venmo will deposit the cash back earned at qualifying companies into users' Venmo accounts to use within the app, or transfer to their bank account or debit card. Users can track and share the rewards they've earned in the "My Feed" section of the app.

Dive Insight:

Retailers have long searched for the secret sauce behind a successful loyalty program, and some, like Target and Sephora, have repeatedly revamped theirs to lure consumers in. Venmo seems to be creating a seamless rewards programs that can reach users across various retailers, similarly to credit card companies.

The payments app has already come a long way, with retailers like Williams-Sonoma and Abercrombie & Fitch accepting it as a payment method as more (especially young) consumers turn to different platforms to pay for purchases.

As credit card companies partner with retailers like Sephora, Land's End and Sally Beauty to launch branded credit cards, Venmo is also planning to issue a credit card next year with Synchrony. Other companies, including Apple and PayPal, have done the same over the years. 

"With a rewards program, we know how important it is to make sure it's easy to earn and enjoy the benefits from the start, so we created a program without any required opt-ins, difficult redemptions or gotchas," Venmo said in announcement.