2026 Prepaid Payments Data Book

Prepaid card programs continue to see significant traction in growth when categorized as combined verticals, thus highlighting the general strength of prepaid as a fundamental pillar of the payments ecosystem. In the coming five years, Javelin expects compounded annual growth of 5% for seven of the 10 verticals this report focuses on, with five reaching 8% or more. Government-funded programs remain the biggest laggards with significant load volume but growth under the Core CPI rate of 2.7%. 

Although consumer products remain most identified with prepaid, commercial and government opportunities provide significant load value in current and future years. As Javelin expected, changes in the federal administration affected growth in government-related segments and had impacts on private-sector areas through changes in consumer sentiment and budgeting. Javelin expects to see year-over-year growth in segments including gift cards, cash access and alternatives, gaming, and commercial incentive programs, with each averaging at least 8% in annual growth. Lagging products in the coming year include those tied to the standard cost-of-living increases, such as Social Security, as well as those directly tied to reductions in federal funding, such as nutritional assistance and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.

Key questions discussed in this report: 

• Which segments could see immediate and significant growth in 2026?
• How do vertical outlooks differ from rail-focused outlooks?
• Will government-funded programs continue to be erratically anchored to fundamental changes in administration policies? 

Companies Mentioned: 

American Express, Deloitte, Discover, DraftKings, Georgia Lottery, Grazzy, Kalshi, Mastercard, Polymarket, PrizePicks, U.S. Bank, Visa