Pre-Paid Cards Reach Out to the Unbanked
Retail Delivery News (08/16/00) Vol. 5, No. 17 p.A1; Rosenberg, Sharon Harvey
Recently, three new prepaid debit cards were brought
out that provide banks with the chance to market services to
consumers who do not possess a bank account. The cards look and
work like standard debit cards, with the primary difference being
that they draw on a limited amount of funds that can be preloaded
at various kinds of locations. Western Union Financial Services,
a subsidiary of Atlanta-based First Data, and Memphis,
Tenn.-based Revelation America, a church organization that
provides financial services and affordable housing to inner-city
America, have introduced a co-branded MasterCard aimed at
unbanked adults. The two other prepaid debit cards brought out
recently are targeted at individuals who do not yet have a bank
account, specifically college students and teenagers. Visa USA
and U.S. Bancorp will shortly offer the Visa Buxx, which is a
parent-authorized, reloadable, prepaid payment card. The College
Parents of America, a Washington D.C.-based national membership
association dedicated to helping parents prepare for and finance
their children's way through college, and MasterCard are offering
a card that operates just like a regular debit or credit card.
In addition, just like Visa Buxx, this card allows students and
parents to view the cardholder's spending habits over the
Internet. None of the cards extend credit.