The total value of transactions made over prepaid cards will exceed $4.1 trillion globally in 2026, according to research by analyst house Juniper Research.

This is an increase of 75 per cent from $2.3 trillion in 2021 according to Juniper.

The analyst house said that by 2026 the global worldwide value of prepaid card transactions will be just over 50 per cent higher than that forecast for contactless payment transactions.

Juniper said the growth in prepaid cards will be driven by the ongoing replacement of cash, as economies move increasingly towards digital payments.

Juniper predicted that fee revenue from prepaid cards will reach over $32 billion globally in 2026, up from $22 billion in 2021, and claimed prepaid cards will be critical to ensuring that the unbanked are included in the move towards digital payments.

The research also predicted that the US would account for over 43 per cent of global prepaid card transaction values in 2026 but said that China is seeing increasing prepaid card use, as international tourism recovers.

“Tools such as restricted authorisation and digital issuance will enable prepaid cards to benefit from the evolution of traditional gift cards into full-blown prepaid cards, driving significant revenue,” said Nick Maynard, research author at Juniper Research.

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