Perspectives: Tim Sloane
The Top 4 Reasons the Unbanked Pay Prepaid Fees & Why Consumer Groups Should Let Them
by: Tim Sloane, Mercator Advisory Group
5/1/2013
Consumer groups and legislators argue prepaid fees are unfair, as if there were no costs involved in delivering the benefits that low and moderate income users enjoy when using prepaid products. These are the features the unbanked and underserved need... Read More >
Investors Don’t Understand Prepaid
by: Tim Sloane
3/1/2013
TSYS’ acquisition of Netspend highlights the confusion investors have regarding the prepaid market.This isn’t surprising since the market is complex. A prepaid company’s valuation will be impacted by the consumers it targets, the channels it uses to enter the market,... Read More >
The Future of Prepaid and Our Distorted Views – Both Will Be Revealed At Prepaid Expo!
by: Tim Sloane
2/21/2013
The IIR has asked Mercator Advisory Group to implement a confidential survey about how our industry views the future of prepaid. This effort promises to bring new insights to the industry, and (as Mercator has done for ten years with... Read More >
TSYS Acquires NetSpend; And Then There Were Two…
by: Tim Sloane
2/20/2013
TSYS announced Tuesday it is acquiring Netspend for $1.4B. With this acquisition, only two large independent GPR program managers remain UniRush and AccountNow. The remaining programs are either vertically integrated (Green Dot) or divisions of a larger enterprise (H&R Block,... Read More >
Mainstream Media Misleads Public Regarding Prepaid Debit Cards
by: Tim Sloane
1/29/2013
US News & World Report recently published an article entitled “The Perils of Prepaid Debit Cards” by Susan Johnston that identified many reasons consumers should avoid prepaid products. This article, and too many more just like it, assumes everyone in the... Read More >
A Lesson From the UK: ATM Costs Could Break the U.S. Prepaid Model
by: Tim Sloane
9/18/2012
If you expect ATM access to be free for low balance bank accounts and prepaid cards, please pay attention to the recent news out of the United Kingdom. The story in ATM Marketplace, “Will UK banks break the ATM LINK?,”... Read More >
The Days of GPR Are Over!
by: Tim Sloane
9/6/2012
It is no secret that I believe the term "general purpose reloadable" is a huge liability to the prepaid industry. This entry presents my argument. Here is my rationale for eliminating the term GPR and creating new segments and terms... Read More >
Prepaid Stock May be a Good Bet
by: Tim Sloane
8/7/2012
Before I dive into this topic, I have two disclosures to make.First, I do not own any prepaid stock. I have mutual funds, but to my knowledge none of these have prepaid holdings. Second, I’m not great at predicting a... Read More >
Chase Expands Prepaid Market But Will Have Minimal Impact on Incumbents
by: Tim Sloane
5/11/2012
With the announcement that Chase has introduced a Prepaid Financial Services (GPR) product called Liquid, several financial analysts have predicted that this new competitor puts Green Dot and Netspend at risk. In Mercator Advisory Group’s opinion, this demonstrates a misunderstanding... Read More >
Reform Of The Prepaid Card: Good Intentions Gone Bad
by: Tim Sloane
4/10/2012
Reinvestment Partners ignores the value of prepaid debit cards and focuses instead exclusively on cost. As with other consumer groups, Adam Rust, Director of Research at Reinvestment Partners, has issued a press release and a new report that promotes principles... Read More >
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