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Data for today’s episode is provided by Mercator Advisory Group’s Report: 18th Annual U.S. Closed-Loop Prepaid Cards Market Forecasts, 2020–2025
COVID-19 & Closed-Loop Campus Cards:
- Closed-loop campus cards are used on corporate, industrial, and educational campuses from elementary schools to universities.
- Originally issued for identification and access control, many closed-loop cards now have payment capabilities.
- For example, some cards can be used to make purchases at vending machines, cafeteria lines, and laundry facilities.
- Closed-loop campus cards experienced a large decline due to COVID-19.
- Mercator Advisory Group estimates there was a ~33% drop in load values in 2020.
- This load value is expected to rebound to 2019 levels by mid-2022 as the impacts from the pandemic subside.
About Report
The report titled 18th Annual U.S. Closed-Loop Prepaid Cards Market Forecasts, 2020–2025 provides an analysis of the growth and development of the prepaid cards industry through 2025. The report examines loads, growth potential, and market dynamics in the United States across all closed-loop prepaid card segments.
Mercator Advisory Group’s forecast report identifies key segments that will continue to decline over the next few years as well as those that should see growth. The economy, regulation, consumer behavior, and the COVID-19 pandemic will all influence which segments grow and which decline.
“The pandemic has affected closed-loop card loads differently by segment. Digital and virtual gift cards are forecasted to continue growth amid a booming e-commerce market. As the pandemic subsides and in-store foot traffic returns, in-store gift card loads will slowly come back, however, the consumer trend towards digital channels will remain, resulting in digital and virtual cards winning market share over time,” commented David Nelyubin, Senior Analyst of Mercator Advisory Group’s Prepaid Advisory Service, the author of the report.
