CASH CARDS

With approximately $30 billion spent annually in the United States on promotions, businesses, organizations and individuals, consumers need a cost effective alternative to carrying cash and checks.

Program Description:
Cash cards are available as general use disposable cards or as re-loadable cards that allow access at ATM and POS terminals.
Cash card products include prepaid cash cards, refund cards for purchase returns, promotional cash reward cards, campus cards, cash cards for messengers or temporary help who need occasional access to funds.

Although cards are predicted to take a 47 per cent share in US payments by 2010, and about 785 million cards are used today, paper payments comprised 63 per cent of payments in the US in 2001, according to The Nilson Report. With over 6,000 US credit card issuers dispensing cards, product differentiation is also moving up the agenda, in the form of novel card shapes, contactless and 'proximity payment' cards. "The biggest opportunity for card companies is their ability to replace cash payment with card payments", confirms Celent analyst, Ariana-Michele Moore, as "consumers don't like to scrounge around for pennies".