Articles of Interest

Who’s Really Driving Mobile Payments (You’ll Be Surprised)— The leading users of mobile payments in the U.S. are the people who also use prepaid cards, according to a report titled “Prepaid and Gift Cards in the U.S.” by market-research publisher Packaged Facts.

MOBEAM AND CLUTCH LAUNCH MOBILE WALLET THAT BEAMS BARCODES TO LASER SCANNERS — This new feature lets consumers use Mobeam’s technology to beam barcodes from their loyalty, membership, and gift cards directly from their smartphone to any laser scanner.

A Game Changer — Imagine if everyone who had a cell phone could also have access to financial services, and could save and send money safely, regardless of location.

Prepaid Not Prepared For Debit Fees — Buying a prepaid debit card these days is just about as easy as picking up a bottle of shampoo or a candy bar. Walk into a Wal-Mart or almost any major drugstore, and rows of plastic worth $25, $100 and even $500 beckon from kiosks alongside prepaid phone cards and gift cards for retailers.

Prepaid cards a new way to bank? — You see them in almost every checkout line display, propped next to phone cards, iTunes cards and Olive Garden gift cards, emblazoned with the familiar Visa and MasterCard logos. But the reloadable prepaid cards with names such as Green Dot and NetSpend are much more than just another option for gift-giving. For a growing number of Americans, they’re a new way to bank.

Prepaid Cards Move Beyond the ‘Underbanked’ — Prepaid bank cards — reloadable debit cards originally designed for consumers without bank accounts — are becoming more mainstream.

Prepaid Card Market Explodes, to Reach $118.5B by 2012 — The big issuers have long neglected the market for prepaid cards, which are used primarily by unbanked consumers. This is about to change, however, as the recently enacted CARD Act has made it much more difficult for issuers to make money from traditional credit cards, prompting them to start exploring other options.

Re-think everything for mobile or you’re toast — Mobile devices are about to dwarf computers and the mobile web will have to take off the training wheels. Is your company ready?

Ashford Publishing Radio Presents Marcie Haitema — Thursday, Dec 8, 2011, Interview with former NACHA Chair.