The Global Payments Report 2024 from Worldpay shows that transaction value on prepaid cards is set to surpass $1 trillion in 2024.
As one of the most flexible payment forms currently available, prepaid cards offer a wide range of use cases, from private-label gift cards or general-purpose reloadable cards through to direct deposit payroll cards or the distribution of government benefits.
Worldpay’s 2024 study explains that prepaid cards have been so successful because they are attractive to merchants, businesses, fintechs, banks, card networks and consumers alike.
They support financial inclusion by providing a convenient electronic payment tool to unbanked and underbanked consumers, and have also proven popular in developed markets where consumers are concerned about privacy or personal information being exposed via data leaks.
Prepaid cards are popular for e-commerce in some countries, as well as being used for gifts, to manage spending, and when travelling either as a tourist or on business. Migrant workers also use prepaid cards for remittance purposes.
Popular in Italy – and world-wide
The Global Payments Report 2024 includes data on the use of prepaid cards in specific markets.
For instance, prepaid has long been popular among privacy-conscious Italian consumers: Postepay, a prepaid card co-branded with Visa or Mastercard, is offered by Poste Italiane (the Italian post office). Postepay can be used in stores, online and at ATMs both domestically and abroad.
Postepay’s popularity is so vast that prepaid cards in Italy have the highest share of online or in-store transaction value of any market featured in the Global Payments Report 2024.
“Prepaid cards in Italy have the highest share of online or in-store transaction value among all markets featured in the GPR 2024.”
In 2023, Italians used prepaid cards for 15% of all e-commerce transactions; by comparison, the next highest users of prepaid cards for e-commerce were consumers in Saudi Arabia at 6%, followed by those in Turkey at 5%.
A similar story is seen at point of sale (POS), where prepaid was used for 12% of all transactions in Italy, compared to 7% in Saudi Arabia, and 6% in the UAE and Nigeria.
Other prepaid card offerings reviewed in this year’s Global Payments Report include the GrabPay Card in the Philippines – a Mastercard-branded digital prepaid card that can be used to make online purchases and pay for digital subscriptions, with card holders receiving Grab Rewards points for purchases.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Octopus has collaborated with Mastercard to launch a virtual prepaid card called Octopus Wallet.
The card is linked to an Octopus digital wallet payment account and enables card holders to shop globally online at any merchants that accept Mastercard, helping Hong Kong residents to shop securely online without the risk of compromising their account details.
Learn more about the dynamics of the global payments market and how they could affect your business – download The 2024 Global Payments Report from Worldpay now
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