Discover Launches Current Prepaid Card for Teens

According to this article in Digital Transactions, Discover Fiancial Services has released a prepaid card called Current that is aimed towards teens. The difference between this prepaid card and others is that users are not held accountable for unauthorized use after the card is lost or stolen, so it has the benefits of a debit card. The Current also does not allow its users to go below the account balance, therefore eliminating overdraft fees.

The Current by Discover has a monthly fee of $5, but its account holders can save $10 by paying $50 once a year.

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Speaker Profile: Mark W. Yusko

Mark W. Yusko is the President and Chief Investment Officer of Morgan Creek Capital Management, LLC, a registered investment adviser formed in July 2004 to provide investment management and advisory services based on the University Endowment Model of investing to wealthy families, individuals and institutional investors. Prior to forming Morgan Creek, Mark served as the Chief Investment Officer for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) from 1998 to 2004. Mark, and his team, founded the UNC Management Company (UNCMC) in July of 2002 to provide comprehensive investment advisory services to the University including strategic and tactical asset allocation, investment manager selection, manager performance evaluation, spending policy management and performance reporting. Mark received his Bachelor of Science Degree, with honors, in Biology and Chemistry from the University of Notre Dame in 1985 and a Masters of Business Administration in Accounting and Finance from the University of Chicago in 1987.

Don’t miss Mark Yusko’s keynote speech, How Globalization has Re-Shaped the Investment Landscape: An Economic Outlook for 2009, at the Prepaid Card Expo event in Orlando on March 9th through 11th.

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Wolfe.com acquires swapagift.com

Wolfe.com, owner of GiftCards.com, recently acquired Swapagift.com, a marketplace to buy and sell unused gift cards. In addition to Swapagift.com, Giftcards.com owns Omni Prepaid, Mycoupons.com, SteringInvestments and Jambo Media. For more, read this article at The Paypers.

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Insurance Company to Offer Prepaid Cards to Customers

According to Pacific Business News, First Insurance Company of Hawaii customers will be able to get immediate help through a new partnership with a prepaid card program. InsurCard, a wholly owned subsidiary of Service Network Design, and First Insurance offer prepaid cards to cover eligible policyholders’ immediate needs in the event of a hurricane or other major disaster. Do you think insurance providers in the continental US will follow suit, i.e. with flood and fire protection? We'd like to hear your thoughts.

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February Prepaid Professionals LinkedIn Roundup Update

Here's the February edition of the newsletter we regularly send out to our Prepaid Professionals LinkedIn group members. Remember to join our Prepaid Professionals LinkedIn group if you haven't so already in order to receive these communications on a monthly basis. Enjoy!

Read the Newsletter

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Walmart cutting prices on MoneyCard

Walmart will be cutting the price of its prepaid MoneyCard to $3, down from $9. They're looking to appeal to customers who aren't comfortable with using credit cards in the current economic situation, and are looking to build brand loyalty among its shoppers. Since introducing the card in 2007, they've sold over 2 million and $2 billion has been loaded onto the prepaid cards.

Source: Reuters

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Keynote Speaker Profile: Carol Kinsey Goman, Ph.D., Author, Coach and Consultant

Dr. Carol Kinsey Goman, president of Kinsey Consulting Services, specializes in energizing individuals and organizations to thrive in an environment of constant change. Carol speaks at business and association conferences around the world, coaches executives to become more effective communicators, and helps develop management strategies that utilize creative collaboration. She has been cited as an authority in media such as Industry Week, Investors Business Daily, CNN’s Business Unusual, and the NBC Nightly News. She has served as adjunct faculty at John F. Kennedy University in the International MBA program, at the University of California in the Executive Education Department, and for the Chamber of Commerce of the United States at their Institutes for Organization Management. Her books include, Ghost Story - a business fable about the power of collaboration and The Nonverbal Advantage: Secrets and Science of Body Language at Work.

Dr. Goman will be presenting her speech, Tearing Down Silos to Drive Success in Prepaid at this year's conference.

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Take our latest poll

If you haven't already, make sure to take our latest poll on our sidebar, "Do you expect further legislation mandating increased consumer protections on gift cards to be passed in 2009?" We will be posting the results next Monday!

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iTunes Giftcards stand apart in prepaid world

Philly.com recently took a look at how consumers view iTunes prepaid cards differently from others. They were number 1 on wish lists this past holiday season, and stand out in customers minds. Since the time Apple began the iTunes store in 2003, the gift cards have accounted for at least 36% of all iTunes purchases. This unique card allows for personalization for receivers of all ages, making it transcend many of the other available gift cards on the market. For more, read the article.

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FTC crackdown on prepaid calling cards: $2.25 million fine

According to Credit.com, several major prepaid calling card companies have agreed to pay $2.25 million as part of a settlement to resolve Federal Trade Commission (FTC) charges. The companies were accused of misleading consumers about the number of minutes they were purchasing with their calling cards. The settlement resolves charges brought by the FTC last May against Alternatel, Inc.; Voice Prepaid, Inc.; G.F.G. Enterprises, LLC, also known as Mystic Prepaid; Voice Distributors, Inc.; Telecom Express, Inc.; and their principals, Nickolas Gulakos, Moses Greenfield, Lucas Friedlander, and Frank Wendorff. According to this article and the news about prepaid calling cards, what are some brands that you use or suggest others use? How can consumers protect themselves from fraud?

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Speaker Profile: Ozzie Smith

Now that the Prepaid Card Expo is rapidly approaching, we want to take some time over the next couple of weeks to profile the keynote speakers. Today, we would like to begin by introducing to you Ozzie Smith.

Ozzie Smith is known in baseball as “The Wizard” and the best defensive shortstop of all time. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2002. Ozzie retired from baseball in 1996 after playing 19 years in the major leagues, the first four years with the San Diego Padres and the final fifteen with the St. Louis Cardinals. His nickname describes the way he played shortstop—he performed magic with his glove and performed in the infield with amazing acrobatic agility.

Ozzie’s charitable endeavors almost always benefit children, and he has spent countless hours assisting various charities such as Multiple Sclerosis, The Variety Club, Ronald McDonald House, Annie Malone Children’s Home, The Boys Club of St. Louis, and Kids in the Middle.

Ozzie has also authored several books including Road to Cooperstown and Wizard.

Don’t miss Ozzie Smith’s keynote speech, Putting Service Above Self to Create Magic in the Lives of Millions, at the Prepaid Card Expo event in Orlando on March 9th through 11th. Next Thursday we will profile PCE keynote Dr. Carol Kinsey Goman, president of Kinsey Consulting Services.

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India changes rules on prepaid mobile phone cards

According to The PayPers, India has altered the way prepaid mobile phone cards can be used. They will not allow the cards to pay for anything other than mobile content. This is in an effort to stop the rise of unaccounted or black money. Only banks and finance companies will be allowed to issue prepaid cards that are accepted outside a closed group.

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Leading French Hotel Group Partners with MasterCard

According to this article on Forbes, MasterCard and the French hotel and services group Accor has partnered to create a prepaid venture in Europe.

The joint venture plans to offer services for contract workers without bank accounts, credit cards for companies to help better manage employee expenses, and gift cards for coffee shops. The European prepaid sector is estimated to be worth 130 billion within five years and this partnership plans to take at least five percent of this sector. Do you think that this is feasible?

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Free Web Seminar: Assessing Prepaid Market Opportunities Around the Globe

The team at Prepaid Expo Europe has recently put together the free webinar Assessing Prepaid Market Opportunities Around the Globe which will take place on Thursday, February 19th from 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM EST. Mention priority code G1U2248W3BLOG when you register. Ray Stanton, Managing Director at SCL, and David T Shewmaker, Managing Director Europe of StoreFinancial will be presenting.

Here’s a brief description of the webinar:

As the U.S prepaid industry becomes increasingly saturated and interest in prepaid programs in many parts of the world grows, it is time for program managers to consider targeting the international consumer.

This webinar will look at the current attitudes towards prepaid cards in different markets, identify areas for consideration when entering the international marketplace, and discuss the challenges faced when launching a prepaid program into unknown territory. David Shewmaker and Ray Stanton have both worked in the prepaid industry for a number of years and will draw on their wealth of knowledge, sharing their observations, experiences and lessons learned.

What you will learn by attending:

• Overview of the international prepaid industry
• New Market Considerations
  
• The Challenges of entering the international arena
  
• The future of international prepaid
  

Register here: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/353686626

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New proposal could allow Nevada officials to seize prepaid card funds

In a recent report at MSNBC, they share that Nevada has a new proposal to all no-warrant seizures funds on prepaid debit cards. Authorities believe this could be a way to track down those involved in illegal activities such as terrorists or major drug dealers. For more information, read the article here.

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A Special Message from the Prepaid Card Expo Conference Director

We would like to share with all of our blog readers a special message from the Prepaid Card Expo Conference Director, Keith Kirkpatrick, in which he discusses many unique offerings that are made available exclusively for our LinkedIn members, including special price discounts, a VIP registration area and an exclusive VIP Lounge. Take some time to view the complete message, and as a reminder, make sure to join the Prepaid Professionals LinkedIn Group to receive future communications on the Prepaid Card Expo and news revolving around the prepaid card industry.

View the Message

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Reserve Bank of India: Rs50,000 Max on Prepaid Cards

Wealthy individuals in India looking to have the convenience of a prepaid card could face problems if they try to load more than Rs50,000 onto their prepaid cards. According to TaxGuru.com, The central bank has also laid down certain exceptions in KYC requirements available only in cases wherein semi-closed system payment instruments up to Rs 1,000 may be issued subject to reporting of annual turnover or suspicious transactions. The issuer should ensure that, under no circumstance, more than one card is issued to the same person. It seems that this restriction on prepaid cards limits stems from India's fight against terrorism. Because loading cash to a prepaid card can be relatively anonymous, India may be looking to protect the country's citizens with these measures. What do you think?

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iTunes Gift Cards Stand Out

This recent post on Philly.com highlights that gift cards were number one on consumers’ wish lists during the 2008 holiday season according to the National Retail Federation. The most sought out gift card this year, which comes as no surprise, is the iTunes gift card. Many believe that gift cards are not personal enough, but consumers seem to disagree. It is estimated that 36 percent of all iTunes purchases come from gift cards, and that number climbs to 61 percent for teen consumers.

It will be interesting to see if other companies can create a similar demand for their prepaid cards as Apple has done with the iTunes gift cards.

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New prepaid card from Tuxedo Money Solutions

Tuxedo Money Solutions, a UK based prepaid card program provider, has issued a new prepaid card. The Corporate MasterCard Prepaid Card is targeted at the UK business community.

Features include:

The card is issued by financial services providers Newcastle Building Society. Cardholders who opt for the Tuxedo Corporate Card can access and view their monthly expenditure online and subsequently export their expenses into a spreadsheet (such as the one provided by Microsoft Excel). The card can also be blocked and unblocked by the user either online or via text message in case there is a suspected security breach. Funds can be added or taken from the card as well as moved from one card to another by an administrator also online or via text message.

For more, read the article at the Payers.

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Credit cards for the "credit challenged"

Shannon Perry at Seattlepi.com, outlines some great ideas for persons with little or no credit who are looking for a credit card. In this piece she shares the virtues of secured credit cards. She sees secured credit cards as the solid way to respectable credit history.

• Secured cards require you to put up money in a savings account as security.
• You are actually operating on credit.
• Your collateral savings earn interest.
• You can use the card anywhere credit cards are accepted.
• These cards report to credit bureaus.

To find out more, visit her post here.

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