5 September 2006
UK payments association APACS has announced that pre-pay gift cards are a useful initiative to help children learn how to budget effectively.
APACS has made the statement following the announcement by credit card provider MINT that it will launch a gift card redeemable at many high street stores. The product is topped up by the purchaser and for a £3 fee any amount between £10 and £250 can be loaded on.
Sandra Quinn, APACS spokesperson, said: "This is a useful budgeting tool to teach them how to use money. If £30 is provided in one lump the recipient might spend it all in one go. If it is on a gift card they will understand that it could be spent on two or three things."
She also advocated that MINT gift cards would not make money from the card's recipient or purchaser (whose £3 fee would only cover the card cost) as is the case for credit cards.
She argued: "As a card issuer you get money every time there is a Visa or MasterCard transaction. With those who use their card frequently - the card issuer will be making money out of the usage."
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