The secret life of gift cards: Here's what happens to the billions that go unspent each year
The secret life of gift cards: Here's what happens to the billions that go unspent each year
Americans are expected to spend nearly $30 billion on gift cards this holiday, according to the National Retail Federation. Most will be redeemed.
Gift cards make great stocking stuffers — just as long as you don’t stuff them in a drawer and forget about them after the holidays.
Americans are expected to spend nearly $30 billion on gift cards this holiday season, according to the National Retail Federation. Restaurant gift cards are the most popular, making up one-third of those sales.
Most of those gift cards will be redeemed. Paytronix, which tracks restaurant gift card sales, says around 70% of gift cards are used within six months.
But many cards — tens of billions of dollars’ worth — wind up forgotten or otherwise unused. That’s when the life of a gift card gets more complicated, with expiration dates or inactivity fees that can vary by state.
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gift cards and virtual app balances allow companies to operate as unregulated banks, and take out massive loans using their unspent balance as collateral. It's a clever way to avoid the typical regulations in holding client money
Never thought about it that way and didn't know they could do that.
I assume it's not literal. Just kind of functions that way in practice.
For Starbucks I believe it is literal that they operate more as a bank than a coffee chain