EFunds Corporation (NYSE:EFD), a leading provider of risk management, electronic payments and global outsourcing solutions, today announced the introduction of a turnkey, prepaid gift card solution for small and mid-sized financial institutions and credit unions.
EFunds is calling the solution Card in a Box. EFunds will offer its Card in a Box offering to small and mid-sized banks and credit unions immediately, providing a turnkey solution that can be implemented in approximately 30 days. The rapid implementation turnaround and low cost of market entry gives small and mid-sized institutions a packaged gift card offering designed to attract cardholders for the upcoming 2005 holiday season.
"Today, only 23 percent of all mid-sized institutions offer Prepaid Gift Cards and this percentage drops precipitously for smaller banks," said Tim Sloane, prepaid market analyst for Mercator Advisory Group. "Consumer demand will prove difficult to address until more small and mid-sized banks distribute Prepaid Gift Cards."
Key benefits of the Card in a Box solution include low, one-time start-up fees, minimal up-front investment, a flexible card re-sale price, and a commission-based sales program that compensates financial institutions for every card sold - providing a robust revenue channel as institutions head into the high-volume gift-giving season. The gift cards will initially be available as Visa branded cards, and will be honored wherever Visa debit card brands are accepted. Through its acquisition of WildCard Systems, eFunds will provide all card issuing, administration, risk management, customer support and payment processing. Card in a Box includes all prepaid program administration, including set-up, sponsorship, issuing, payment processing and reporting. It also features a standard IVRU and Web site for cardholder self-service - eliminating the need for staffing and training from the financial institution.
Mercator Advisory Group indicates that the Money & Open Gift Card market is developing quickly, having grown at 255% in 2004 and ending the year at $1.42 Billion in total card loads. It also believes that this growth is expected to continue for several years and projects that the market will top $3.6 Billion in card loads by the end of this year. This forecast of continued rapid growth is based on two assumptions: that the financial services industry will continue to heavily promote these products to consumers and that the products will become available in more locations.
"EFunds is pleased to be able to support our customers with market-ready prepaid gift card solutions - the demand has been overwhelming," said Rahul Gupta, senior vice president, Payment Account Solutions at eFunds. "Our acquisition of WildCard Systems has given us increased agility in the prepaid space, enabling us to meet the growing demand for gift card solutions that complement our entire range of payment processing and risk management solutions."