Paybefore Announces Winners for European Awards

Today Paybefore reveals the winners in 2014 Paybefore Awards Europe.

The third annual competition proved fierce throughout all 10 categories—the most ever—which included Top of Wallet, Market Mover and The One to Watch. This year, awards judges created the category Best Problem Solver, which recognizes winning programs using prepaid as an elegant solution to a significant problem. Entries across categories represented programs from the U.K., Turkey, Austria, France, Germany, Portugal, Poland, Hungary, Italy and more.

“Paybefore Awards Europe shine a spotlight on the innovators using payments to solve complex problems for a variety of constituents,” said Loraine DeBonis, Paybefore editor-in-chief and chair of the judging panel. “Our winners are pushing the boundaries of what is possible in payments.”

Paybefore CEO Marilyn Bochicchio added, “It’s an exciting time in payments everywhere in the world, but this year’s Paybefore Awards Europe winners demonstrate how quickly prepaid and mobile solutions are replacing legacy paper-based systems. Paybefore Awards is thrilled to recognize the organizations that are taking on paper in its many forms—not just cash—to improve business, government and consumers’ lives.” Paybefore Awards Europe’s distinguished winners were selected by a five-judge panel comprised of Dr. Hugo Godschalk, PaySys Consultancy GmbH, managing director/partner, and Prepaid Forum Deutschland founder; Craig James, Neopay CEO and director of Prepaid International Forum; Siobhan Moore, associate, Locke Lord; and Paybefore’s Bochicchio and DeBonis.

Today’s winners now compete for the Best-in-Category distinction, which will be announced during a presentation at the All Payments Expo Europe in Marbella, Spain, on 19-21 May 2014. Before and during APEX Europe, visitors to Paybefore.com will be able to vote for one People’s Choice winner. Stay tuned for more details coming soon at Paybefore.com. Congratulations to all our winners!

Best Choice Retail Card:

ASDA Closed Loop Gift Cards
ASDA and First Data

HTA Garden Gift Card
Horticultural Trades Association, StoreFinancial

River Island Gift Card
River Island

Top of Wallet

Kalixa Pay
Kalixa

Skrill Prepaid MasterCard
Skrill

Vodafone SmartPass
Wirecard AG

Best Travel Companion

airberlin Flight Voucher
airberlin

Fair FX
Payment Card Technologies

ICE Travellers Cashcard
International Currency Exchange, Lenlyn Group

Top Motivator

Air BP Sterling Reward Programme
Air BP and Citi Prepaid Services

Bridgestone Prepaid Card
The Bancorp

Nikon Consumer Cashback Programme
Nikon and Citi Prepaid Services

Boundary Buster

Bread4Scrap
Payment Card Solutions

EE Cash on Tap
EE Ltd.

mpass
Wirecard AG

Prepaid with Soul

fastPay
DENIZBANK A.S.

ICE Travellers Cashcard
International Currency Exchange, Lenlyn Group

One4all BBC Children in Need Gift Card
One4all

Best Problem Solver

Austrian Airlines Prepaid Card
PayLife Bank GmbH

Canon Easy Warranty Plan
Epipoli

Travel Welfare
Payment Card Technologies

Market Mover

fastPay
DENIZBANK A.S.

Gordio Pointstic
Epipoli

Pingit
Barclays

Consumer Champion

cash4web MasterCard
PayLife Bank GmbH

ICE Travellers Cashcard
International Currency Exchange, Lenlyn Group

paysafecard
paysafecard.com Wertkarten AG



The One to Watch: Program

Genç Bankkart
Ziraat Bankasi

Infinite Aisle
InComm Europe

One4all Personalise My Card
GVS

The One to Watch: Company

CashStar Inc.

Skrill

Wirecard Card Solutions



Join us at APEX Europe to see who wins Best-in-Category! See you May 19-21 in Marbella, Spain!

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Paybefore Recognizes Market-Leading Programs in London

Last week at Prepaid Expo Europe, Paybefore announced the Paybefore Awards Europe 2013 Best-in-Category winners. Paybefore Awards Europe was created to recognize excellence and innovation in the European prepaid and emerging payments market.

“Prepaid is a global phenomenon,” said Marilyn Bochicchio, Paybefore CEO. “Nearly all of the companies we’re honoring here tonight are supporting innovative and effective programs in Europe, and are operating in or planning to expand into new geographic markets.”

2013 Paybefore Awards Europe Best-in-Category Winners are:

Best Gift Card or Voucher Programme
£5 for a £10 Starbucks Card eGift, LivingSocial Deal
Starbucks, LivingSocial and CashStar

Best Prepaid Incentive, Reward, Rebate or Loyalty Card Programme
Western Union MyWU Prepaid Card
Western Union

Top Prepaid Retailer
Asda
Supported by InComm Europe

Best Consumer Value
paysafecard
paysafecard group

Best Corporate- or Government-Funded Programme
Simple Payment
Citi Prepaid Services and Department of Work and Pensions

Most Innovative Programme
Bratislava City Card
First Data

Outstanding Mobile Wallet or Application
O2 Wallet
O2 Money Telefónica UK

Breakout Company of the Year
Wave Crest Group Limited

For a complete list of winners, click here. 

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The B2B Applications of Prepaid: Implications of Mobile Payments

In the video below, Carol Lee Mitchell of Global Prepaid at MasterCard sits down with Marilyn Bochicchio, CEO of Paybefore, earlier this year at Prepaid Expo USA 2012 to discuss Paybefore's mission.

Marilyn speaks about emerging and developed market trends She highlights the B2B applications of prepaid and the implications of mobile payments. She also shares her views about the existing regulatory environment in the US.

As the leading prepaid and emerging payments publishing company, Paybefore sponsors the Paybefore Awards®:

Now in its seventh  year, Paybefore Awards is the oldest and most prestigious awards to recognize excellence in the worldwide prepaid and stored value industry.

Three winners will be selected in approximately 20 categories, including Most Innovative Prepaid Solution and Breakout Prepaid Company of the Year. Best-in-Category and Industry Achievement winners will be announced at the Prepaid Expo USA, March 4-6, 2013, in Orlando, Fla. Applications will be available in mid-September, with nominations due Friday, November 16, 2012.

Editor's Note:  We encourage you to learn more and become involved with Prepaid Expo 2013, bringing together professionals from leading retailers, processors, financial institutions, service providers and marketers in the prepaid marketplace every year. Over 12,000 people have attended Prepaid Expo USA since 2007 to hear industry experts discuss what's next in the growing prepaid marketplace and where it fits in our new economy. Visit www.PrepaidExpoUSA.com to learn more.

* Thank you! Save 10% off the standard rate when you register for Prepaid Expo 2013, use Prepaid Expo Blog Reader VIP Code: XU2648BLOG10.

About the Author

Valerie M. Russo is a Senior Social Media Strategist at IIR USA and Managing Editor of the Prepaid Expo Blog. She has worked in media positions at Hachette Book Group, Aol, and Thomson Reuters and has an anthropology and brand-building background. She is also published poet and maintains a literary blog. She will be live blogging during Prepaid Expo 2013, taking place March 4-6, 2013, in Orlando, Florida and hopes to meet you there. She may be reached at vrusso@iirusa.com. Follow her @Literanista.

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Ramping Up for Paybefore Awards

By Marilyn Bochicchio, Paybefore CEO

The run up to Paybefore Awards is the most exciting time on the Paybefore calendar, because it’s when we receive nominations from organizations all over the world telling us about the amazing prepaid programs they’ve launched to solve real-world payments problems and create new products and services that are valuable for consumers, businesses and governments.

This year, once again, our office was inundated with nominations. In fact, we received the most entries ever. The most popular categories—and, therefore, the most competitive—are Best B2C or B2E Prepaid Program, Best Consumer Value, Most Innovative and Best Non-U.S. Prepaid Program. The judges, who have just received their boxes of compiled nominations, will have their work cut out for them selecting the winners in these categories especially.

The judges are a very important part of the Paybefore Awards process and we ask them to dedicate significant time to evaluating nominations. This year we actually have two groups of judges. One group will consider the “category” awards. The other group—comprised of past Paybefore Awards Industry Achievement winners—will select the next Industry Achievement winner or winners. I think it’s especially exciting that past winners will have the full responsibility of selecting the next person (or persons) to receive this coveted title.

What are the surprises in this year’s nominations? Once again (so maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise) is the number of countries represented in the Paybefore Awards nominations: India, Turkey, Canada, Germany, Venezuela, Poland—to name a few. And, also, this year I’m sensing a particularly high level of energy and inventiveness in the nominations. I’m quite excited about digging into my own two boxes (yes, two large boxes) of documents and getting a better appreciation of the thought and care that has gone into the nominated programs.

Paybefore will announce 51 Paybefore Awards winners (three each in 17 categories) in Paybefore Update in January. But, you’ll have to join us at the Paybefore Awards ceremony and celebration on March 7 at Prepaid Expo USA in Orlando if you want to be among the first to know the programs selected Best in Category and the winners of the prestigious Industry Achievement award.

I hope you’ll join us there to celebrate your own successes in prepaid as well as those of your colleagues!

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