Prepaid Debit Card Reviews, Complaints, Etc

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  • Best Prepaid Debit Cards.com Launches New Infographics Section

    Best Prepaid Debit Cards.com Launches New Infographics Section

    Best Prepaid Debit Cards.com recently launched a new infographics section in their Resources & Learning Center category. Our hand-selected or custom-designed infographics are an interesting, educational and entertaining way to pass along consumer personal finance information. We started the section with the first post about the Prepaid Debit Card Market in the U.S. Our first custom infographic educates consumers about celebrity prepaid debit cards and fees that may be attached. How do celebrity cards compare to other bank cards? You decide.

    Take a look at our Infographics page here. Check back as we will be adding new graphics all the time.

  • Infographics: Prepaid Debit Cards & More

    Infographics: Prepaid Debit Cards & More

    There are a lot of great infographics out on the web these days. Below you will find links to some of our personal favorites. If you see infographics in the personal finance space that we should link to or have ideas for us to create, please leave a comment.

     

    Celebrity Prepaid Debit Cards Smackdown

    Prepaid Debit Cards

    Celebrity Prepaid Debit Cards Smackdown

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      Prepaid Debit Card Market in the U. S
    Prepaid Debit Card Market in the U. S infographic
       

  • Magic Johnson Stands Up To Cancer With A Prepaid Card

    Magic Johnson Stands Up To Cancer With A Prepaid Card

    Former Los Angeles Lakers great Magic Johnson seems to be just about everywhere these days.If you happen to be a fan of NBA basketball, you no doubt have watched and listened to Johnson provide expert commentary during games televised by ESPN and ABC. And even if you prefer the diamond to the basketball court, you have likely noticed that the Hall of Famer is now one of the owners of baseball’s Los Angeles Dodgers.

    If anything, Johnson has actually surpassed his prowess on the court during his post-NBA years as a businessman. One of Johnson’s more recent ventures is the release of a MAGIC Prepaid MasterCard, one of a growing number of celebrity endorsed prepaid debit cards aimed at garnering a chunk of the quickly growing market.

    While Johnson is certainly throwing his weight behind promoting the card that has his nickname emblazoned on the front – he has recorded a number of online videos pitching the card and its benefits – the MAGIC Prepaid MasterCard is also pitching in to the fight against cancer. Indeed, Magic Johnson’s prepaid debit card is among the family of MasterCard consumer and small business cards that are participating and promoting the “Dig In & Do Good” program. As part of its larger Stand Up to Cancer initiative, MasterCard is donating $.01 to support cancer research every time someone uses MasterCard to pay for a meal costing $10 or more between July 12 and Sept. 28, 2013. MasterCard has committed to donating a total of $4 million.

  • American Express Joins Forces With Video Game Maker

    American Express Joins Forces With Video Game Maker

    Talk about a big, captive audience. Every month the online video game called League of Legends attracts 32 million players from all around the world, who together spend a staggering one billion hours virtually battling and trying to outsmart one another.

    In August of 2013, American Express announced a partnership with the developer of League of Legends, Riot Games, to release a line of prepaid debit cards geared specifically towards the game’s many devoted fans. According to a report in The New York Times, the collaboration is a way for American Express to capture the much- coveted attention of the mostly male, 18 to 24-year-old players while providing Riot Games with the kind of financial resources it needs to expand. “There is a great opportunity for brands here, particularly brands that make sense for our players,” Times reporter Tanzina Vega quoted Dustin Beck, vice president of electronic sports at Riot Games as saying.

    While the American Express Serve Prepaid Account works in much the same way as any prepaid debit card – allowing cardholders to fund their accounts in a variety of ways, including direct deposit, and then spend the money wherever American Express is accepted – there are naturally a host of elements designed to appeal to League of Legend gamers. Indeed, according to the American Express press release announcing the partnership, players can personalize their cards with images and logos from the game. Perhaps more importantly, using the prepaid debit card earns players so-called “Riot Points,” which is the virtual currency used in League of Legends to purchase characters and other goodies helpful in the game.

    For instance, anyone who completes registration for the card – which has no activation fee and no minimum balance – earns 1,000 Riot Points. Loading $20 onto the card for the first time earns gamers 1,000 and initiating direct deposit to fund the card garners 10,000 Riot Points. American Express undoubtedly hopes that the passion so many people have for League of Legends will transfer to the prepaid debit card. “Riot Games is passionate about serving their players and giving them avenues for enhancing their gaming experience,” said Stefan Happ, senior vice president, US Payment Options for American Express. “Together we’ve been able to create a co-branded product with a unique rewards program that will help League of Legends players earn Riot Points whenever they use their card to make qualifying purchases.”

  • Retailers Celebrate Swipe Fee Ruling – Federal Reserve Caps Swipe Fees

    Retailers Celebrate Swipe Fee Ruling – Federal Reserve Caps Swipe Fees

    By Shane Tripcony

    It has been an issue of contention for a long time. The so-called swipe, or interchange, fees that retailers are charged every time a customer makes a purchase using a debit card have long been a boon for banks and the bane of retailers who have to pay them.

    Most recently, thanks to the Dodd-Frank law that passed in 2010, the Federal Reserve put a cap on those fees at 21 cents per transaction. Although banks screamed that the cap would cost them billions in lost revenue – and force them to eliminate perks and awards programs – retailers were never overly thrilled with the ruling, either, arguing that the fee was still artificially high.

    According to a report in Bloomberg, U.S. District Judge Richard Leon in Washington ruled on July 31 that the Federal Reserve considered information it shouldn’t have in arriving at its cap of 21 cents. Additionally, Bloomberg reporter Tom Schoenberg writes that Leon’s ruling determined that the Fed did not sufficiently foster competition among the card networks that levy the fees. “The board’s final rule not only fails to carry out Congress’s intention; it effectively countermands it!” wrote Leon in his ruling.

    Although the current swipe fee cap will remain in effect, the ruling means that Fed regulators will have to go back to the drawing board and come up with either a new or an interim ruling. Not surprisingly, the reaction to the ruling was split, with retailers cheering the decision and banks claiming it will do harm to banks and their customers. “The price controls enacted as a result of the Durbin Amendment served one purpose – further lining the pockets of our nation’s big-box retailers at their own customers’ expense,” Bloomberg quoted Frank Keating, the president of the American Bankers Association as saying. “It was – and still is – all about trying to help retailers increase profit margins while providing no real benefit to consumers.” By contrast, the National Retail Federation released a statement saying that the “decision is the first step in setting these initial wrongs right and will ensure that swipe fee reform is done correctly.” Although nothing concrete has been announced yet, it’s unlikely that the ruling will not be appealed.

  • The Occupy Movement Takes On Prepaid Cards

    The Occupy Movement Takes On Prepaid Cards

    The name says it all. When Occupy Wall Street became a household name a couple of years ago, the protesters were able to focus a light on the financial services industry and – at least in its view – the many harms it inflicts on the vast majority of citizens and the nation as a whole.

    While the Occupy movement was successful in raising awareness about the activities of big banks and other financial players, there has been plenty of criticism that it was lacking in concrete accomplishments. In at least one very specific way, that looks to be about to change. In July, it was announced that the Occupy Money Cooperative was being launched and that its first product would be a prepaid debit card.

    Recently, BestPrepaidDebitCards.com spoke via email with Carne Ross, a founding board member of The Occupy Cooperative, about the Occupy Card , why it chose to issue a prepaid debit card and how the group aims to change the financial services industry.

    BestPrepaidDebitCards.com : Why is Occupy's first financial product a prepaid debit card? Is it because they have traditionally been such a bad deal for consumers? Or does it also have to do with the fact that this is a product that has a lot of potential?

    Ross: We chose a prepaid card as our first product because it’s one area where the unbanked and underbanked are exploited by current providers charging excessive and often hidden fees. We have also realized that this is a dynamic market and we believe that we can offer a competitive product in the long run, because our costs will be low. Moreover, the more users for the card, the lower the fees, as we will be able to negotiate better rates as we scale.

    BestPrepaidDebitCards.com: A breakdown of fees is important, even if it's estimates. Just how drastically will the Occupy prepaid card differ from other prepaid cards? Besides fees, what other ways will the Occupy prepaid card be different from its rivals?

    Ross: I appreciate the questions but unfortunately I simply cannot even foreshadow the card’s fees and features at this point. We think it will be among the best deals on the market. Our aim is to minimize costs and pass these onto the consumer. We also think that the card will offer some good innovative features. Above all, if you use the card you become a member of the co-op that will offer the card, i.e. you become a co-owner of the company. You will have a stake and a say in how the co-op is run.

    BestPrepaidDebitCards.com: Do you have an estimated launch date for the Occupy Card?

    Ross: We do not. We hope soon. We are about to launch a campaign to crowd-source funding for initial operating expenses for the co-op. If successful – which we expect – we shall launch the card immediately. It’s ready to go. Until we launch the card, I’m not able to say much more, I’m afraid. We want to be super-transparent as a company, but some details we are required (legally) to withhold until the launch.

    BestPrepaidDebitCards.com: What sort of impact do you expect the card will have on banking in general?

    Ross: As we build up the number of users of the card, we shall soon be able to introduce further services that will shake up the current behemoths in the banking sector. These products will serve the same constituency as the card, wherever possible they will bolster the credit unions, provide low-cost choices, bypass the entrenched systems that rip everyone off, and brick-by- brick build alternatives for ordinary folk’s needs. I also should have been clearer in saying that because our costs are very low, we should be able to pass on any savings or benefits to our customer-members.

Prepaid Debit Card Reviews, Complaints, Etc