Wal-Mart banks on cashless society
Wal-Mart extends financial services to low-income customers. The world's largest retailer will sell prepaid payment cards at over 3300 of its discount stores in the U.S.
In the U.S., where 40 to 80 million people lack an account, unbanked workers spend over $300 in fees annually Visa estimates. The new prepaid card, as a quasi bank account, could lower this poverty penalty to $130.
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Funny that Visa is coming off as one of the heroes in all this. In fact, families pay about $300 annually in interchange fees alone each year. A word of caution, these pre-paid visa cards come with re-load and maintenance fees as well. Wal-Mart needs to recoup these transaction fees but if a consumer doesn't use the card in Wal-Mart, they get to keep 100 percent of the maintenance fees.
I've been working with the Merchants Payment Coalition and it amazes me how sneaky Visa is.
Posted by: Triston | Jun 25, 2007 10:09:39 AM