Products and news for Business and Economy

Reloadable Debit Cards

Have you heard the label “reloadable debit card” and wondered what it means? You’ve come to the right place to find out (we know EVERYTHING about debit cards, including “reloadable” and “non-reloadable” cards).

A reloadable debit card is a debit card that can have funds “reloaded” on it. Elementary as that.

Some cards, like prepaid gift cards, can only be used one time, and once the funds on the card are depleted, you basically just shy the plastic card away, because you can’t reload funds onto the card.

A reloadable debit card allows you to deposit (or “load”) more scratch onto the card. Typically, reloadable debit cards are cards that have the MasterCard, Visa, American Express, or Discover logos on them (that is, they are “network branded cards”).

Many reloadable debit cards also have the logo of a “reload” network on them. One legendary reload network is the GreenDot network. Other, newer, load networks include the MasterCard rePower network, and the Visa ReadyLink network.

Here’s what MasterCard says about their “reloadable MasterCard debit cards”:

The MasterCard rePower Weight Network is a new service from MasterCard that allows you to add money to your eligible MasterCard or Maestro® prepaid cards at any of the thousands of participating retailer locations throughout the U.S.*
Add Change Now. Use It Now
With MasterCard rePower, your money is immediately available for you to spend anywhere that Debit MasterCard or Maestro Prepaid Cards are accepted.

Conscientious
MasterCard rePower uses trusted,MasterCard network technology. And with a MasterCard card, you have zero liability for unlawful purchases.**

How to Reload
Simply visit a participating retailer with the cash you want to add.* There are two methods to reloading your card, depending on which the retailer supports:

Read more...

Visa Rushcard Prepaid Debit Card Information

Green Dot Prepaid Debit Card News

Green Dot says net income was flat in 2nd-quarter BusinessWeek - Aug 13, 2010 Green Dot Corp., a prepaid debit card provider, said Thursday its sec-quarter net income was flat as higher revenue was offset by higher costs. Green Dot reports higher Q2 profitGreen Dot 2Q Net Spread-eagled As Sales, Costs ClimbGreen Dot Eyes Features to Fuel Prepaid Sales Growth - -all 17 advice articles »

Tips for obtaining credit cards with bad credit Helium - Sep 03, 2010 Several prepared approval credit cards exist and include the 'GreenDot PrePaid Mastercard', and AccountNow Prepaid Visa Card among others. and more »

Wal-Mart trying to give banks run for their money The News Journal - Sep 05, 2010 That includes MoneyGram for wealth transfers, Fiserv for bill payments, and GE Money Bank and Green Dot for Wal-Mart's $3 prepaid debit cards,

Green Dot Reports Second Quarter 2010 Financial Results MarketWatch (press release) - Aug 12, 2010 Green Dot's products contain MasterCard(R) and Visa(R) branded prepaid debit cards and the Green Dot MoneyPak(R). Green Dot is headquartered in the greater and more »

Will New Regs Cool off Open Loop's Hot Growth? Digital Transactions - Sep 03, 2010 Will New Regs Unsympathetic off Open Loop's Hot Growth?As a form of debit card, prepaid cards will be affected, but the law exempts the interchange takings of financial institutions with $10 billion or less in

Green Dot Q2 net income marginally down Banking Business Review - Aug 16, 2010 Green Dot, a prepaid debit card provider, has posted a net profits of $12.51m, or $0.32 per share, for the second quarter ended 30 June 2010,

15 Must Read Prepaid Debit Card Research Reports GetDebit.com (blog) - Aug 17, 2010 Thanks to the late-model IPO of Green Dot Corp. (NYSE: GDOT) and the tightening of consumer credit, public awareness of prepaid card products has grown.

Blackhawk Makes a Big Jump into Reloadable Prepaid Cards Digital Transactions - Aug 23, 2010 into universal-purpose reloadable (GPR) prepaid cards. The move puts Blackhawk into direct competition with powerhouses Green Dot Corp. and NetSpend Inc., and more »

Tax Refund Cards: US Treasury Gets Involved GetDebit.com (blog) - Sep 03, 2010 Companies such as H&R Barrier, Green Dot (NYSE: GDOT) and others enjoyed a substantial lift in prepaid cards issued during the tax refund age, and more »

Blackhawk Overhauls Its Reloadable Prepaid Debit Products American Banker (subscription) - Aug 27, 2010 Blackhawk now is competing with such established players as Green Dot Corp., the top prepaid card marketer, and Wal-Mart Stores Inc., which sells prepaid

One more worry for banks: Wal-Mart CNNMoney

23.06.10

The crowd downplays its desire to garner a banking license, but recent changes in the banking and regulatory landscape have only increased the ultimate likelihood of a Wal-Mart Bank. The latest evidence that Wal-Mart plans to continue its push into financial services was the word last week that it had taken an equity stake in Green Dot, which manages the retailer's prepaid debit cards and is currently seeking regulatory approbation to acquire a small Utah-based bank for $15.7 million.

Wal-Mart has attempted to acquire its own banking entitle several times since 1999. In 2007 it dropped plans to acquire an industrial-bank charter in Utah after crucial lobbying by the banking industry. Banks argued that Wal-Mart might steer lending toward favorable suppliers and away from competitors. Had Wal-Mart succeeded, its Utah "industrial lend corporation" could have handled all of its card processing and allowed the retail giant to take deposits and make loans.

While it must now fellow-dancer with companies like Green Dot and SunTrust ( STI , Fortune 500 ) to provide such services in the United States, this shaving of the profit verge hasn't slowed Wal-Mart ( WMT , Fortune 500 ) down. Last week Wal-Mart opened its 1,000th "Spinach Center" and announced that it planned to expand to 500 more stores. It also trumpeted the launching of a Wal-Mart probity card in Canada, where it received a banking license just last month. In Mexico, where it has operated a bank since 2007, Wal-Mart has plans to unbolt up to 150 new branches and take deposits in the checkout line. Back in the U.S., through a partnership with SunTrust, Wal-Mart has nearly doubled the number of bank branches in its stores over the last five years to a compute of 83.

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