6 Things that makes a Prepaid Credit Card

Written by imoney

Thinking about getting off your credit card but still need a means to pay by plastic?  With a prepaid card, you can enjoy all the benefits of a credit card but with the added advantage of being able to control your spending using prepaid credit cards’ pre-loading mechanism.

If you need more reasons to switch over to a prepaid credit card now, check out these six key advantages:

No Income Document Required:

The greatest proposition of a prepaid card is that anyone can get it.  There is no submission of salary slips or EA forms, which is the standard practice for credit card application.  This allows people earning minimal incomes, especially fresh grads that have just entered the workforce, to enjoy the benefits of paying with plastic even though they may not yet qualify for the minimum income requirement of a standard-tier credit card.

Gives You Better Spending Control:

Just like a debit card, a prepaid card only allows you to make purchases with the money you already have.  Say you want to buy an item that costs PHP1000 with a prepaid credit card loaded only with PHP500, you simply wouldn’t be able to. Because of this, a prepaid card makes for a great instrument to control your spending and ensure that you’re not splurging beyond your means, this is very true because it gives you the exact same feeling of paying for stuff with cash.

No Debt Trap from Towering Interests:

Due to massive interest rates as high as 44.0% p.a., as well as the ability to make purchases on credit, the potential of accumulating a towering debt from credit cards is very real.  A prepaid credit card, on the other hand, does not allow you to make purchase on credit and hence has no concept of “interest”, which mitigates all risks of you getting into debt issues from its use.

Offers Greater Security for Your Money:

All financial card products have the potential of being misused via fraud and identity theft, and this is no different for a prepaid card.  But compared to a debit card (which is linked to all the money in your saving account) and a credit card (which usually has five-figure credit limit); a prepaid credit card offers you greater protection on virtue that you only stand to lose the money you’ve pre-loaded.

Works Just Like a Credit Card:

With the exception of the need to pre-load money, a prepaid card works just like a credit card.  This means you’ll be able to pay for your purchases at any outlets displaying the Visa or MasterCard sign (depending on the type of prepaid cards you have), be it locally or overseas.  Best of all, prepaid cards can also be used for online payments. This is like every girl’s fantasy.

May Also Reward You Just Like a Credit Card:

Due to increasing competition in the financial sector, some banks now offer prepaid credit cards that come with point-based reward programs similar to most of the credit cards in the market.  By accumulating points you acquire from your prepaid card transactions, you can redeem gifts and vouchers.

Want to get a prepaid credit card?  Most banks in Philippines offer it. To get one, simply go to the bank website and apply or you can do it manually, go to them the old fashioned way, go to the bank and inquire.

Alternatively, if you’re looking for a conventional credit card that fits your requirements, you can start comparing using our credit card comparison table.