Prepaid Expo Day 2: Mid Day Recap

"Are GPR Cards a Destination or a Journey?" was an interactive panel with many industry heavyweights debating the trajectory of prepaid GPR cards. The panel was moderated by the CEO of Paybefore Marilyn Bochicchio and the panel was made up of: - Dan Henry, CEO, Netspend - Brett Adams, Lead, U.S. Prepaid Products, MasterCard Worldwide - Mark Putnam, SVP & Divisinal Manager of Prepaid Solutions, First Data - Adam Rust, Director of Research, Reinvestment Partners Incase you missed the session, here are some highlights: - There are 68 million people that are underbanked - for many, GPR cards are the only choice (18-23% of all people get turned down on traditional banking options) - Over the past few years, the total cost of ownership for prepaid cards has steadily decreased - Prepaid options that are totally transparent can lead to increase trust from the consumer - Mobile enabled features is key: it all comes down to combining the paper and the digital worlds - The appeal of prepaid is about having immediate access to your funds

Share this article with your social network, just click below to share now!

Share |

TSYS Set to Acquire NetSpend in $1.4B Deal

TSYS, a leading global payment solutions provider announced yesterday that they will acquire NetSpend, a leading U.S. provider of general purpose reloadable (GPR) prepaid debit cards to underbanked consumers. It’s a transaction valued at approximately $1.4 billion.

At Prepaid Expo, attendees will get exclusive insight from NetSpend that will provide analysis on this strategic move. Dan Henry, CEO of NetSpend, will be giving his insights on the future of GPR alongside a panel of heavy hitters. Additionally, Tim Pfeifer, Corporate Counsel at NetSpend, will join Don Mosher of Schulte Roth & Zabel for an executive session focused on M&A and IPOs in prepaid – which will shed some light on the consolidation environment in the prepaid space.

For TSYS, the move is transformational in its move to grow its business while complementing its foothold in prepaid processing, according to Philip W. Tomlinson, TSYS’s chairman of the board and CEO.

“[The acquisition] enables us to meet our strategic goals of diversifying our business, being a more innovative payment solutions provider and expanding our role within an area of payments that is expected to grow at a 20% annual rate over the next four years,” said Tomlinson in a statement.

This is a major deal in the prepaid industry, positioning TSYS, the huge processor, to maintain market share amidst strong competitors like Square while accelerating the growth of NetSpend, which should place even more pressure on competitors like Green Dot.

With NetSpend’s extremely extensive distribution network of over 62,000 locations, 130,000 reload locations, and more than 2.4 million accounts, TSYS and NetSpend are solidifying themselves as one of the industry’s biggest players.

Share this article with your social network, just click below to share now!

Share |

Netspend Becomes Check City's Exclusive Debit Card Provider

According to latest release on Business Wire NetSpend and Check City has entered into an agreement in which NetSpend will be the chain's exclusive debit card provider. Both companies will also work together in converting customers that were previously served by using Check City's in house prepaid product to the new NetSpend card.

Dan Henry, CEO of Netspend has mentioned that “Our mission at NetSpend is to bring an unmatched set of financial services products to the tens of millions of consumers who are overlooked and underserved by traditional banks. By partnering with Check City—a company whose passion for top-quality customer service and exceptional products is as strong as ours—we are better able to deliver on that mission in the West and Mid-Atlantic regions.”

Share this article with your social network, just click below to share now!

Share |

Consumer Advocates Want Prepaid Card Restrictions

Kristina Peterson of WSJ/Yahoo Finance reports that new credit card legislation enacted by President Obama is not set to cover prepaid cards. Peterson reports that, "Consumer advocates want to change that. They are urging the Federal Reserve to strengthen guidelines affecting prepaid cards from companies such as Inc., Green Dot Corp., NetSpend Corp. and Inc. while the Obama administrations focus remains concentrated on regulating the credit-card and banking industries. Unlike credit cards, prepaid reloadable cards aren't covered by the federal statutes that protect credit-card holders from fraud or limit their losses when cards are lost or stolen. Though many prepaid card companies do offer some consumer protections, they do so voluntarily. "

Should more restrictions and consumer protection be placed on prepaid cards?

A Push to Regulate Prepaid Cards

Share this article with your social network, just click below to share now!

Share |

Prepaid Cash Cards are on the Rise while Credit Cards Decline

The NY Times recently wrote a piece discussing the rising popularity of prepaid cash cards. In the article James Flanigan highlights how the cards, which have the MasterCard, Visa, or Discover logos, have become more like “portable checking accounts” where consumers can load up on deposits made at retail outlets instead of banks.

He also mentions that companies like Green Dot Corporation, NetSpend, and nFinanSe Inc. are highly involved in the distribution and management of the accounts, handling customer service and providing computer servers and software. The number of “unbanked” and “underbanked” is growing at record pace throughout this economic crisis, and so it is no wonder where there is a sudden decline in credit cards. Do you think that this trend will continue for quite some time?

Share this article with your social network, just click below to share now!

Share |

Meta Payment Systems® and NetSpend® Announce iAdvanceSM Partnership

CONTACT: Nicole Pullman 605.212.0209 or npullman@metapay.com
Brad Russell 512.743.4507 or brussell@netspend.com

Meta Payment Systems® and NetSpend®
Announce iAdvanceSM Partnership
Simple, Sensible Credit.SM Alternative Continues Expansion

Orlando, Fla. — March 9, 2009 — Meta Payment Systems, one of the nation’s leading issuers of network branded prepaid cards, and NetSpend Corporation, one of the leading providers of reloadable prepaid debit cards and prepaid debit card services, are partnering to offer the iAdvanceSM Line of Credit to NetSpend cardholders. Award-winning and patent-pending iAdvance provides consumers with the opportunity to establish short-term, small-dollar lines of credit and have the money immediately available on their NetSpendprepaid card.

“NetSpend cardholders deserve to have options when unexpected expenses arise. iAdvance gives our customers a simple and convenient product allowing them maximum flexibility in managing their finances,” said Dan Henry, CEO of NetSpend. “And unlike other options, iAdvance reports repayment histories to the three major credit bureaus, which means our customers have a powerful tool to improve their credit history.”

The enrollment process takes less than two minutes, and no credit check is required. Once enrolled, advances to cardholders are completed in seconds with funds immediately available to the borrower on their NetSpend prepaid card.

“We are very pleased that NetSpend has decided to offer iAdvance to its customers,” said Trent Sorbe, Senior Vice President of Credit with Meta Payment Systems. “We’ve seen how iAdvance is filling the need to bring sensible credit to customers. Partnering with a market leader like NetSpend demonstrates the value proposition iAdvance brings to prepaid card programs.”

About Meta®
Meta Payment Systems® based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is the world’s leading issuer of prepaid, credit and debit payment solutions as well as the largest sponsor of ATMs in the United States. Meta Payment Systems, a division of MetaBank,™ delivers innovative financial products that are changing the way people use, borrow and manage money. Meta Payment Systems brings money to LIFE. Meta Financial Group, Inc.® (NASDAQ Global Market®: CASH) is the
holding company for federally-chartered savings bank MetaBank. For more information, visit www.metapay.com.

About NetSpend Corporation
NetSpend Corporation is one of the premier providers of innovative, accessible prepaid debit cards which empower consumers with the convenience, security and freedom to be self-banked. NetSpend achieves its mission by serving its customers anytime and anywhere, being trustworthy, reliable, and delivering innovative high value products and features. NetSpend’s proprietary processing platform allows it to support prepaid card programs end-to-end from
customer acquisition and card fulfillment to customer service and risk management. The NetSpend® Prepaid Card Network includes leading consumer brands and companies serving the un-banked and under-banked markets, and its strategic relationships include card issuers, EFT networks and payment card associations. For more information, visit www.netspend.com.

Share this article with your social network, just click below to share now!

Share |

NetSpend and Liberty Tax Service Partner for a Prepaid Card Program

According to this article on The PayPers NetSpend has teamed up with Liberty Tax Service to launch the All-Access Liberty Prepaid Card program.

The program allows consumers to load up their tax refunds onto this prepaid card, and use it for financial transactions at any location where Visa is accepted. The reloadable prepaid card is issued by National Bank.

Share this article with your social network, just click below to share now!

Share |

NetSpend and Skylight Merge

In recent news, NetSpend and Skylight Financial, Inc will merge to create one of the largest companies dedicated to providing financial services to the under banked. NetSpeed Corp has issued more than 14 million prepaid cards. Skylight Financial works with corporate payroll and is also a government benefits card provider.

CEO of NetSpend Daniel R. Henry had this to say about the merger:

The combination of NetSpend and Skylight greatly expands the breadth of products and services we can offer to the millions of unbanked and underbanked consumers in this country. The unique capabilities of the merged companies will allow our corporate customers to manage their gift card, payroll card, and general purpose prepaid card programs in one cohesive product suite.

Kevin Lee, CEO of Skylight Financial said:

We are thrilled to join forces with NetSpend. NetSpend's retail presence and extensive servicing capabilities combined with Skylight's corporate payroll platform and direct-to-consumer sales expertise will provide an unmatched depth of service offerings for consumers and corporations alike.

Share this article with your social network, just click below to share now!

Share |

Netspend and QC Financial Partner to Offer Prepaid Debit Cards

The SunHerald reports that Netspend, a premier prepaid solution provider has teamed up with QC Financial to for a prepaid debit card program. QC Fiancial has over 23 years in the consumer finance industry, but will reloadable prepaid debit cards will be available at 596 QC branches across the United States, roughly 90% of all QC locations.

QC Financial President Darrin Andersen mentions:

"We chose to work with NetSpend because of their expertise with prepaid products and their leadership in the marketplace. NetSpend has proven itself to be a preferred partner for payday loan companies and we look forward to extending these cards to our customers."

These prepaid debit cards will of issued by MetaBank, which is a federally-chartered savings bank headquartered in Storm Lake, Iowa.

Share this article with your social network, just click below to share now!

Share |