As the gig economy and prepaid cards draw more people into mainstream banking, the card providers are increasingly competing with one another instead of simply moving people away from cash.
The announcement is an example of how Green Dot, which swung from a loss to a profit in the fourth quarter, is focusing on technology partnerships with Intuit, Uber and others to boost its bottom line.
Green Dot's financial performance has improved substantially over the past year, enough for the prepaid card issuer to raise its outlook for the rest of the year.
The Pasadena, Calif., firm also reported growth in the number of active prepaid cards for the first time since the second quarter of 2015. Profits rose by 24%.
The fight over a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule adding new restrictions to prepaid cards is intensifying as some Republicans hope to overturn it before a looming deadline expires.
Jeffrey Osher, who led a bare-knuckle fight last year to oust the prepaid card company’s CEO and chairman, will serve as an adviser to the firm’s board.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Wednesday ordered Mastercard and the prepaid debit card company UniRush to pay $13 million in restitution and fines for a service breakdown in October 2015 that left thousands of customers without access to their accounts.
