A prepaid cash card is similar with a credit or debit card, and gives users the ability to purchase products and services with a card but with a crucial difference which means a person can only spend the balance that has been preloaded onto the card. The amount of money you load onto the prepaid cash card will be your spending limit. This means there is no risk of running into debt as it has no credit or overdraft facility.
However, personal identification number has to be keyed in for the transaction to be authorized if using prepaid cash cards. It is considered as most secure and safe financial transaction card because can it likes a portable access point to checking account. Prepaid cash card protect consumers from unauthorized transactions even when the card is stolen or lost. Plus, these cards can also be replaced once it is stolen or lost. Unlike cash, once it’s lost, it’s gone.
Besides, prepaid cash cards are always convenient all the time. It can be used at just anywhere anytime. Transaction can be made just within a minute. Consumers can use it for following matter:
- groceries shopping
- petrol filling
- utilities payment
- movie tickets or airline tickets
- download songs online
- mobile phone billing
- online shopping (eg:eBay)
- online payment
- withdraw cash from the ATM
- As a replacement for travellers cheques or travel cash for a low cost alternative to paying for goods and services abroad.
The card is great for everyday purchases, special occasions, emergency back ups and etc. In short, it is safe, effective and convenient.
The followings are some types of prepaid cash cards:
1) Touch 'n Go
Touch 'n Go smart card is used by Malaysian for electronic payment system to toll expressway and highway. It is expanding its business to retail purchase by starting with fast food industry that enables consumers to buy dough nut, burger or fast-food from 21 outlets such as Burger King, 7-Eleven, Dunkin’ Donut. It is imitating the success of Hong Kong’s Octopus Card by setting 5 to 10% of the card holders for retail purchase as current target of the company. The link for the Touch 'n Go is http://www.touchngo.com.my/
2) Octopus Card
Octopus Card was launched in Hong Kong on year 1997, September. It is a rechargeable contactless stored value smart card to transfer electronic payments in online in offline system. It is widely used in payment system for transportation, supermarkets, fast food restaurant, car parks and other pint of sale application such as service station s and vending machines that have achieved good outcomes. The link for Octopus Card is http://www.octopuscards.com/
3) MetroCard
The MetroCard is the current payment method for the New York City Subway (rapid transit)system, buses in the New York City Transit (including routes operated by Atlantic Express under contract to the MTA), MTA Bus, and Long Island Bus systems, the PATH subway system, the Roosevelt Island Tram, AirTrain JFK and Westchester Country's Bee-Lines Bus System. It is a thin, plastic card on which the customer electronically loads fares. It was introduced to enhance the technology of the transit system and eliminate the burden of carrying and collecting tokens. The MTA discontinued the use of tokens in the subway on May 3, 2003 and on buses on December 31, 2003. The MetroCard is managed by a division of the Metropolitan Transportation Autority (MTA) known as MetroCard Operations and manufactured by Cubic Transportation Systems, Inc.
4) Oyster Card
The Oyster Card is a form of electronic ticketing used on public transport services within the Greater London area of the United Kingdom. It is promoted by Transport for London and is valid on a number of different travel systems including London Underground, buses, the Docklands Light Railway (DLR), London Overground, trams and some National Rail services.
Oyster is a blue, credit-card-sized stored value card which can hold a variety of single tickets, period tickets and travel permits which must be added to the card prior to travel. It is also a contactless smartcard which passengers must pass over electronic readers when entering and leaving the transport system in order to validate it or deduct funds. The cards may be "recharged" in person from numerous sales points, by direct debit or by online purchase. The card is designed to reduce the number of cash transactions at ticket offices and the number of single paper tickets sold on the London transport network. Usage is encouraged by offering substantially cheaper fares on Oyster than payment with cash.
The card was first issued to the public in July 2003 with a limited range of features and there continues to be a phased introduction of further functions. By March 2007 over 10 million Oyster cards had been issued, and more than 80% of all journeys on services run by Transport for London used the Oyster card.
5) Nagasaki Smart Card
Nagasaki Smart Card (長崎スマートカード, Nagasaki Sumāto Kādo) is a contactless smart card system used in Nagasaki, Japan. Its operators are Nagasaki Electric Tramway and six bus companies, namely, Nagasaki Bus, Nagasaki Prefectural Bus, Saihi Bus, Saikai Kōtsū, Sasebo Municipal Bus, and Shimatetsu Bus. The system uses Sony FeliCa technology, the same as that used in the Octopus Card in Hong Kong, EZ-Link in Singapore and Suica on JR East.
The system was introduced on January 21, 2002. As of December 2005, 320,000 cards are issued. The card was initially used for bus lines only. Tram lines of Nagasaki Electric Tramway introduced the card from March 20, 2008.
6) EZ-Link
The EZ-Link card is a contactless smart cardbased on Sony's FeliCa smartcard technology, used for payments in Singapore especially for transportation in Singapore. Established in 2001, it was promoted as a means for faster travel due to speedier boarding times on buses. EZ-Link cards are sold, distributed and managed by EZ-Link Private Limited, a subsidiary of Singapore's Land Transport Authority. As of 2007[update], there are over 10 million EZ-Link cards in circulation, with 4 million card-based transactions occurring daily.
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