21st Annual U.S. Open-Loop Prepaid Card Market Forecast, 2024-2028

Javelin Strategy & Research continues its annual series on trends in the open-loop prepaid market. Javelin forecasts increasingly strong growth in most sectors of the open-loop prepaid ecosystem, including the largest categories of general-purpose open-loop cards, payroll and benefit cards, and business and expense cards. As with each Javelin prepaid forecast, economic conditions play a prominent role in the outlook of individual products, and trends will be graded against comparisons with overall economic activity. Regulatory advances and reduced inflationary pressure continue to help advance products such as benefit cards and general-purpose cards, which can offset higher-interest credit spending. Conversely, macro factors such as impending political changes, reduced unemployment, and lower cost-of-living adjustments moderate the growth of products such as unemployment benefit cards and cards related to Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. 

Similar to prior years, Javelin’s research indicates that American buyers continue to look positively at the prepaid market as a whole, with strong usage and upward trends in intent to buy. The research highlights healthy spending patterns in prepaid cards and the frequency of purchases in the highest-volume categories.

Key questions discussed in this report: 

• What does the load volume and growth of the total open-loop market look like? 
• What segments are primed for outsized growth, and which are poised to slow or decline? 
• What factors affect the growth of each open-loop prepaid product?

Companies Mentioned: 

American Express, Bank of New York Mellom, Comerica, CPI Card Group, Direct Express, Discover, Mastercard, PLI, State Farm, Target, Venmo, Visa, Walmart, Western Union, Zelle