Overdrafts. The bane of our bank accounts. This is just one of the financial expenses imposed on hard-working consumers; not to mention the costs of foreign Automated Teller Machines (ATM) fees when there’s not a branch in sight when you need one. It is of course clear that banks are a business. They provide a service and should be paid for it. But there’s compensation, and then there’s compensation. In May of 2015, CNN Money reported that America’s three biggest banks: JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo earned over $1.1 billion on overdraft fees. And if they stay on pace and you extrapolate those numbers, from this fee stream alone,… Read More
The Appeal of the Prepaid Card
At first reflection, prepaid cards may seem a solution with limited bandwidth; suitable only for those with no other means of establishing and maintaining traditional bank and credit card accounts. Yet, as other tools have successfully morphed from their original intention (think Facebook moving from its original Harvard campus setting and transforming into an international behemoth), so have prepaid cards effectively made their journey from one subset into the general population. Prepaids Offer a Better Deal than Checking Accounts The PEW Charitable Trusts, an independent nonprofit organization that has itself evolved — into a global research and public policy organization — as a non-governmental organization, they are dedicated to serving the public. … Read More
5 Easy Saving Strategies
Saving isn’t always easy, and can sometimes feel like a necessary evil, but in order to secure your financial future, establishing healthy habits for saving is imperative. It’s never too late to start saving for your future, even if you start small. Set goals for your financial future, and then work towards those goals. If you don’t even know where to start, we’ve compiled a few saving strategies that, we think, will be a great place for you to start. Think Before you Buy The first tip is to think before you buy. When you are considering making a purchase, ask yourself if you really need it or if it… Read More
The Next Generation of Paycards and What You Need to Know
In January of this year, the Center for Financial Services Innovation released its Compass Guide to Payroll Cards which defines industry-wide best practices for the design and delivery of high-quality payroll cards and promotes choice, safety, affordability, transparency and convenience. In this post, we’ll outline the three levels that compose the structure of the guide; core practices, stretch practices and next generation practices. Level 1: Core Practices Choice “There is no one-size-fits-all approach to a high-quality payroll card and there is inherent value to choice, diversity and innovation in the marketplace.” Employees are offered a choice about how they would like to receive their wages. Employees are provided clear information… Read More