Amazon talking to banks about checking account-like product: report

Amazon is exploring the creation of a checking account-style product to offer its customers, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday.

The company is reportedly in talks with big banks like JPMorgan Chase about partnering on the potential product. The Amazon-branded checking account would provide an alternative for younger customers and individuals without bank accounts.

{mosads}The concept is still in its early stages, and it’s unclear how exactly it would function, the Journal reported. It’s unclear if the product would allow customers to write checks, pay bills or access an ATM. 

The new product would not involve Amazon becoming a bank, the newspaper reported. Rather, it would focus on partnerships that would allow the company to expand into the financial sector while reducing the fees it pays banks and payment processors.

Talks of the new product come as Amazon has broadened its reach. The company acquired Whole Foods last year for $13.7 billion.

The company is also in the midst of deciding a location for its second headquarters. Among the finalists are Washington, D.C., Northern Virginia, Miami, Dallas and Atlanta.