Photo credit: Rupixen/Unsplash

This is the fourth entry in a series examining what key loyalty-program trends in 2026 mean for brands and consumers – from AI-driven commerce to emerging coalitions. Read more in the series here.

By Uwe Stueckmann

In the high-stakes battle for the Canadian wallet, the old rules of loyalty are changing rapidly.

For decades, coalition programs defined the category. With a single card, a shared currency and a centralized data asset, models like Air Miles offered scale by bringing multiple brands into one ecosystem. But as we move through 2026, a quieter, more agile approach has taken over: the loyalty federation.

Recent partnerships point to this shift. The tie-up between WestJet Rewards and Canadian Tire’s Triangle Rewards program allows customers to earn across both ecosystems by linking their accounts, effectively “spending once and earning twice.” Similar linkages are emerging across the market, reflecting a broader move toward interoperability without full integration.

The rise of the soft-link federation

This isn’t an isolated incident. RBC has become the architect of this federated world, weaving a web that links Avion Rewards to Petro-Canada, Rexall and DoorDash. And, of course, RBC powers the WestJet credit-card program. Meanwhile, Aeroplan runs linking programs with Uber, Starbucks and Parkland Corporation’s Journie Rewards.

Federated loyalty programs are built on lightweight connections rather than full consolidation. Instead of merging currencies or platforms, brands link existing programs through APIs, allowing customers to earn and sometimes redeem across partners while each company maintains its own system.

This approach offers a level of agility that traditional coalitions often struggled to achieve. Partnerships can be implemented relatively quickly and expanded over time with limited technical lift. At the same time, brands retain control over their own programs, data and customer relationships, avoiding the long-term constraints of a shared platform.

The friction: Does the customer even notice?

Despite their advantages, federated models introduce new complexities. The economics of these partnerships are not always straightforward, particularly when it comes to who ultimately funds the incremental rewards being offered to customers.

More importantly, with so much “stacking” and “accelerating” happening behind the scenes, there is a real risk of loyalty fatigue. If the value is too complex for the customer to calculate, it becomes a silent subsidy rather than a behavioural driver. Furthermore, federations often provide only a glimpse through the keyhole; partners rarely share the granular SKU-level data needed to build a truly meaningful and monetizable data asset.

The evolution of the coalition: Scene+ vs. the ghost of Air Miles

While federations are gaining momentum, coalition programs are not disappearing, they are evolving.

Traditional coalitions have historically crumbled under their own weight. Air Miles, the granddaddy of loyalty in Canada, fizzed out and spiralled into bankruptcy in 2023. The U.K.’s Nectar saw value erode as sponsors balked at paying a middleman tax (to Canada’s Aimia) for their own data, ultimately leading to its demise (and subsequent acquisition by Sainsbury’s). These legacy programs failed because they were managed by third parties whose interests eventually diverged from the retailers they served. Loyalty ceased to be a means and became and end in itself. The tail wagging the dog.

Enter Scene+, which has rewritten the coalition blueprint through a different ownership model. By making the anchor tenants (Scotiabank, Empire and Cineplex) the actual owners of the program, Scene+ has reduced the friction of the middleman. This alignment has allowed it to scale, recently poaching Shell Canada to secure the grocery-fuel-bank trifecta. Unlike the rigid coalitions of the past, Scene+ is structured to be in service to its owners, not its own P&L.

The long-term efficacy of this approach remains to be seen. Partners need the willingness to freely share data (constrained, of course, by privacy considerations and permissions). The program operators must create true data expertise without ballooning the cost of the operating entity, and the sponsor brands must act like true partners. With the operator essentially being a not-for-profit entity, operational efficiency and the drive to innovate might be suboptimal.

Finally (unlike the federated model), this is a marriage of brands, not a date. Everyone is in it for the long haul and must park their individual brand’s (and people’s) ego for the benefit of the whole.

Not a small feat.

The lone wolves: Why the biggest don’t need to partner

At the other end of the spectrum are fully owned, closed-loop ecosystems. For companies with sufficient scale, these models offer a different kind of advantage.

Take PC Optimum. With more than 16 million active members and a presence in grocery, pharmacy, apparel, financial services and beauty, Loblaw doesn’t need a handshake with a third party (Esso not withstanding). They are the ecosystem. By keeping the program entirely internal, they capture the full 360-degree view of the household spend. That data asset is far too valuable to share with others.

In a massive move this year, the program is doubling down on this closed-loop approach. With EQ Bank recently receiving regulatory clearance to acquire PC Financial, the program is swapping out its traditional banking back-end for a high-agility digital partner. This isn’t a federation; it’s a structural reinforcement. By owning the financial rails and the retail floor, PC Optimum creates a data asset so deep that linking with an outside airline or coffee shop would only dilute their proprietary platform.

The verdict: Marriage vs. friends with benefits

The industry is at a crossroads. Federations offer the speed and flexibility required in a rapidly evolving world where AI might soon manage our rewards. But the coalition, if governed correctly as a shared asset like Scene+’s grocery-fuel-bank powerhouse, remains a potent alternative.

Then there is the third path: the sovereign ecosystem. For titans like Loblaw, the message is clear: When you already own the customer’s entire morning routine, why share the data?

In the end, we must remember that these loyalty schemes are a simple, implicit contract with the customer: I, the retailer, will give you some value in exchange for your data. If the federated and coalition programs do not let the participating brand freely access and leverage that data to improve the customer experience, these schemes are just that. Schemes. Marketing gimmicks. Disguised discounts. And if that’s all they are, they are way too costly to operate in the long run and only add unnecessary complexity to the customer experience.

Uwe Stueckmann is a former EVP of customer experience and SVP of marketing and CRM at Loblaw and VP of marketing and CRM at Shoppers Drug Mart. He is also the co-founder of Innovate Marketing, a consultancy launched last fall that focuses on AI’s effects on commerce.