PELORUS Group Report Maps Explosive Stored Value Growth

Companies and consumers are embracing stored value initiatives in record numbers. This simple fact reverberates across industry segments, and according to a new report from The PELORUS Group, it virtually mandates a re-examination of traditional credit/debit models. Entitled Stored Value: Transforming The Payments Industry, the study tracks the meteoric rise in popularity of stored value cards. The broad-based trend toward stored value solutions transcends industry strata and is prompting wholesale changes in the payments process. The result? Banks, credit/debit card issuers and prepaid concerns are rethinking market strategies to incorporate stored value initiatives. The popularity of stored value is not limited to banks and credit card issuers. The report notes that the enormous success of the Starbucks Card has prompted many merchants to leap onto the stored value bandwagon. The study projects that in 2004 400 million convenience cards will be sold to consumers who dont wish to wait in line to pay for a cup of coffee or a sandwich. According to the study, over 22 million prepaid debit cards will be issued in 2004. Within five years, that number will more than double as prepaid debit cards, a.k.a. stored value cards, soar to over 50 million in circulation.