Pre-paid debit cards work well on the closed-loop systems of college campuses, where students use a versatile ID card to purchase food at participating stores and restaurants, swipe for meal plans and use copiers and vending machines without the need for change. Parents or students simply add money onto the card account when needed, and most universities have online access for balances and deposits.
Hartland-based Smart Card Solutions LLC (SCS) offers a similar service but across multiple industries and using brand name debit cards including MasterCard and Visa.
Similar to the business model of the Cingular Go Phone, in which customers can utilize the flexibility of a mobile phone on a prepaid basis without committing to a plan, the SCS SmartTrack prepaid debit program enables users to have a debit card on a prepaid basis without the requirement of a checking account or acceptance by a bank.
Bill Biwer, president of SCS, works with companies to offer prepaid debit card solutions to their customers. SCS is a software development company specializing in system integration for transaction automation, Biwer said.
“We have positioned ourselves as a technology partner for customers, putting together solutions for them, including cards, point-of-sale terminals and Web sites for data,” Biwer said.
SCS offer services for prepaid gift card programs, prepaid debit programs and customer loyalty cards. SCS also has extensive services using smart cards, which look like credit cards but instead of a magnetic strip on the back, there is a smart chip on the front of the card. The smart chip is the same technology that is implanted with the SIM card on a mobile phone. Pages of information can be stored on the smart chip, whereas only bank account information is stored on a magnetic strip.
“SCS does the cardholder accounting process,” said Doug Martin, chief financial officer for Cornerstone Bancard in Atlanta. “A cardholder loads the card with $200 and SCS’ system puts $200 dollars on the card. A cardholder uses a card at an ATM or a point-of-sale terminal, spending $53, and SCS’ system captures the payment records, deducts the amount from the cardholder balance and also provides online access so that the cardholder can get online and look at the transactions.”
SCS launched its program at the same time Cornerstone was launching its company into the market, about six months ago, Martin said.
Cornerstone offers products including: the Manna Card, for missionaries; the Elite Card, attuned for companies that are paying employees or independent contractors; Uni-Mas, which is used in Puerto Rico specifically targeted to religious organizations, and the Maestro prepaid debit cards that can be used at Maestro, Cirrus or Star mark merchants and ATMs.
SCS’ core competency is software development, Biwer said. SCS works on an application service provider (ASP) model writing applications that talk to backend systems, including point-of-sale systems, database engines and card management systems to maintain balance or perimeters and Web sites to access data and reports.
SCS uses a template to create a Web site for the client’s Smart Track PE card system. The Web site allows customers to check balances and deposit funds while giving the client administrative access, Biwer said. Card access is either PIN-based (personal identification number), signature-based or BIN-based (bank identification number).
The system is built in a .NET Windows Enterprise server environment, Microsoft’s framework for Web services. The .NET gives SCS flexibility and scalability with its Web sites, Biwer said.
Biwer did not disclose the cost of the SCS Smart Track PE prepaid debit card program. The program does include set-up and licensing fees, ongoing transaction fees and maintenance fees.
“Because we are an organization dealing with a lot of people, we have to have a very robust technology platform so that people in other countries and in the U.S. can access their funds and organizations can get funds to them quickly,” Martin said.
SCS’ system has helped Cornerstone expand from two prepaid card programs to seven in its short existence. Cornerstone is currently working on a prepaid debit card program that will use a professional athlete as its brand, Martin said. Martin did not disclose which athlete or expand on the program offering.
“We look for organizations that are cutting checks to independent contractors, or the organizations can be sending cash to its missionaries overseas or a company with a large percentage of employees who are un-banked,” Martin said.
SCS broke into the un-banked market of teenagers, specifically with e-commerce Web sites. Tucson-based Yo It’s Me, Inc. offers prepaid MasterCard debit cards that can be used wherever Debit MasterCard is accepted and are signature-based, and prepaid Maestro cards, which are PIN-based.
Yo It’s Me is a company centered on enabling everyone to take advantage of card technology on a prepaid basis. Yo It’s Me also brands its cards with other companies.
SCS concentrates on its robust technology and breaking into new markets while working with clients to create and brand their prepaid cards.
“We are in the background, and as long as transactions are flowing no one knows who we are,” Biwer said.
