St. Petersburg, FL, Dec. 14, 2011 – Credit unions are finding the ability to offer convenience and control with a prepaid Visa card platform is a winning combination for members. Prepaid Visa gift cards offer exceptional convenience for both givers and recipients, while prepaid Visa reloadable debit cards deliver control and security that can be used to budget everyday spending or travel expenses, or to monitor spending by teens or young adults.

Both cards offer compelling benefits and should be part of a credit union’s portfolio, according to Ron Silvia, Vice President, Debit, ATM & Prepaid Services, PSCU Financial Services. The CUSO reports that 151 credit unions use its prepaid platform, representing over 700,000 active prepaid Visa gift and reloadable cards.

“The prepaid card market is one of the fastest growing segments in the industry and delivers attractive revenue opportunities for credit unions,” Silvia said. “Our PrepaidChoice™ platform offers prepaid Visa gift and Visa reloadable debit cards that can be used at all merchants that accept Visa debit cards and also can be replaced if lost or stolen. Reloadable cards have access to cash from Visa ATMs worldwide.”     

ESL Federal Credit Union of Rochester, N.Y., worked with PSCU Financial Services to launch a new suite of prepaid gift and reloadable Visa debit card products. "There is strong member demand for these products and we are seeing a good response to our marketing efforts," said Celeste Kier, ESL's vice president/director, marketing. The credit union offers a reloadable Visa family card, Visa prepaid card, Visa gift card and Visa travel card—and all carry the credit union’s brand and logo.

In addition to branch and website materials, the credit union promoted its new cards with clever radio advertisements that highlighted the benefits to parents for use by teens and young adults, as well as messaging about convenience for use by all consumers.

“There is a long list of advantages for prepaid cards,” Kier explains. “They are safer than carrying cash; help members budget their money and avoid overdraft fees; prevent overspending; provide online tracking; offer financial education for teens and an alternative to members who do not have a credit card.”

PSCU Financial Services delivers 24/7/365 support for cardholders and free comprehensive, customizable marketing materials for use by credit unions to promote these products. Each credit union has the flexibility to choose its own fee settings. Cards are branded with each credit union’s  name and logo.

About ESL Federal Credit Union

Founded by George Eastman in 1920, ESL Federal Credit Union is a full-service financial institution with $4.0 billion in assets. ESL employs more than 600 people locally and has about 300,000 members worldwide. The company was recently ranked 16^th as one of the 2011 Best Small and Medium Work Places in America by the Great Place to Work® Institute and presented by Entrepreneur® - the second consecutive year the company was named to the list. Access to the credit union includes 19 branch locations and more than 40 ATM locations, a Contact Center, and Internet, online and mobile  banking channels. The company is headquartered at 225 Chestnut Street, in Rochester, N.Y., and can be found on the Internet at esl.org. 

About PSCU Financial Services

Based in St. Petersburg, Florida, PSCU Financial Services is the nation's largest credit union service organization (CUSO) and serves more than 1,500 financial institutions nationwide. As a non-profit cooperative, the company is owned by more than 680 member credit unions representing 16 million credit, debit, prepaid, online bill payment and electronic banking accounts. Its Contact Centers handle more than 18 million inquiries a year.

PSCU Financial Services offers 24/7 member support through four Contact Centers: its Eastern operations center in St. Petersburg, Fla.; a Western operations center based in Phoenix, Ariz.; and two call centers in Detroit, Mich. These Contact Centers perform member servicing and new member acquisition, cross-selling and automated lending solutions as well as support for debit/credit/prepaid cardholders, online bill payment and electronic banking subscribers.

Established in 1977, PSCU Financial Services offers its members a full range of processing options, any combination from full service to in-house pass through processing for credit, debit and ATM transactions. As a leader in the credit union movement, the company offers gateway access to national and regional networks. It also provides full function ATM terminal driving services. For more information, visit PSCU Financial Services’ website at www.pscufs.com.