You may already have a checking account, debit card and credit cards, but you may not be aware of a relatively new option in the financial world: virtual prepaid cards. These cards work a bit differently than others. They allow you to load a particular amount of money onto the card. When that money is spent, the card no longer works until you reload it. If you own a business, you can issue your own virtual or physical prepaid cards for your customers through a financial institution. This practice provides many advantages, and a prepaid card may work well for you, either as a consumer or a business owner.
In the banking world, card issuing refers to the activity of a financial institution, such as Evolve Bank & Trust, to provide card programs to its customers. These may include credit or debit cards, physical cards, virtual cards and even branded cards. Open banking, in which financial data is securely shared across platforms and among parties, may be involved here as well.
Lately, there’s been a trend toward businesses issuing prepaid cards for their customers, using their own logo but working through a bank to make sure that all funds and transactions are well-managed and fully secure. This provides the convenience businesses and consumers want with the security they need.
What Is Card Issuing?
Cases for Issuing Prepaid Cards
There may be many reasons why a business like yours would issue a prepaid card through a bank such as Evolve Bank & Trust. For one thing, this allows your customers a completely different means of payment. They can get a prepaid card from you through a well-known bank in the amount they choose. Then they can use it to make worry-free purchases through your company and reload the card for future purposes.
The system is simple to use on both ends of the transaction. You’ll avoid the high fees involved in credit card transactions, and you’ll have less to think about in terms of security because you won’t be storing your customers’ financial data (like credit card and bank account numbers). Customers won’t have to worry about overdrawing with a debit card or someone stealing their financial information.
Your company may also work with prepaid card issuers for promotional reasons. Branded cards with your business’s name and logo make excellent prizes for contests, for instance. If you’re running a raffle or a drawing, you can use these convenient prepaid cards, which may draw customers back to your business to make further purchases.
Benefits of Issuing Prepaid Cards
There are many benefits of issuing prepaid cards, both for businesses and consumers. For businesses like yours, you can think in terms of customer loyalty. When customers have a prepaid card with your company’s name on it, they’re more like to keep coming back to you. They like the advantages of prepaid cards, and they appreciate your company’s flexibility and the convenience you offer.
Prepaid cards can also help you attract new customers. You might provide discounts or coupons to those who sign up for your prepaid card for the first time. When they have your card and understand that you have much to offer, they’ll keep coming back and even tell their friends and relatives about your business.
These prepaid cards provide plenty of benefits for consumers, too. They’ll be more likely to avoid overspending because of the set amount on the card, which is easy to use and less risky than carrying cash. Customers can be assured of the security of these cards, too, because they’re not connected to their bank or credit card accounts. With virtual prepaid cards, consumers can even check their card balance online and reload funds with no difficulty.
Your customers will appreciate the payment alternative you provide when your business issues one of these convenient prepaid cards. You might even decide to use one or two of these cards yourself on occasion to take advantage of their many benefits.