The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday edition that new Ontario legislation will allow loyalty points to expire, reversing an expiry ban currently articulated in the Protecting Rewards Points Act (2018). Guest columnist Vass Bednar writes that the legislation reclassifies loyalty programs as a revocable, programmable corporate currency, allowing companies even more control over synthetic value in the modern economy. The so-called "loyalty" bargain has been steadily deteriorating. For instance, in May, Starbucks updated its policy so Starbucks Stars now expire six months after the calendar year in which they were earned. Their prepaid coffee cards had a stored-value liability of $1.78-billion (U.S.) at the close of fiscal 2025 -- signalling that Starbucks clientele enjoy loaning the company money interest-free. Now those loyal customers face shrinking odds of ever seeing a tiny treat as payoff. As of October, 2025, Dunkin' similarly rewrote the rules of its rewards program in ways that quietly eroded its value to customers. Points now expire 12 months after they are earned, scrapping the long-standing ability to accumulate indefinitely. Loyalty points function like a private money supply with minimal rules.