Google Wallet Launches Prepaid Debit Card

By Trey Thoelcke Published Nov 21, 6:45AM EST

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Tech giant Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) has announced the launch of the Google Wallet Card, a prepaid debit card. The new card will allow users to make purchases in stores or withdraw cash at ATMs without the wait for money to transfer from the users’ Google Wallet accounts to their bank accounts.

Google Wallet is a virtual wallet that is funded by transfers from other Google Wallet users or money transferred from other bank and credit card accounts. Holders can use that balance to pay with a mobile phone at certain retailers. Google Wallet has been around since 2011, but unlike rival Paypal from eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY), Google Wallet has never caught on in a big way. That is partly because Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhones have not adopted the technology necessary to use the in-store payment feature, and few retailers are equipped with the appropriate point-of-sale equipment to process the transactions.

The new prepaid card precludes the need for a phone or point-of-sale equipment. The Google Wallet Card can be used at all locations where MasterCard is accepted, and it does not come with any fees.

According to Google, with the Google Wallet Card, users can:

Spend anywhere. Use your Wallet Balance to shop and pay in stores by swiping your card at millions of MasterCard® locations.

Get cash at ATMs. Withdraw money from your Wallet Balance at ATMs. Some ATM providers may charge you a fee for cash withdrawals.

Receive instant notifications when you spend money. Get instant notifications right on your phone to help you keep tabs on all of your transactions.

Be free of annual or monthly fees. You can order the Google Wallet Card for free, and there are no annual or monthly service fees to use the card.

The card also can also be used for various Google services, such as purchases on Google Play and YouTube. Once the Google Wallet Card has been ordered, it should arrive within 10 to 12 days. More details are available here.

This being from Google, it should come as little surprise that data from transactions on the card will be captured to help the company with its ad targeting. Captured data will include a description of goods purchased, the amount of the transaction and the name and address of the seller.

Will this help Google Wallet catch up with Paypal, which also offers a prepaid debit card? Time will tell. Other virtual wallets include Alipay from Chinese Internet giant Alibaba, as well as eZeClick, which American Express launched in India earlier this year.

About the Author Trey Thoelcke →

Trey has been an editor and author at 24/7 Wall St. for more than a decade, where he has published thousands of articles analyzing corporate earnings, dividend stocks, short interest, insider buying, private equity, and market trends. His comprehensive coverage spans the full spectrum of financial markets, from blue-chip stalwarts to emerging growth companies.

Beyond 24/7 Wall St., Trey has created and edited financial content for Benzinga and AOL's BloggingStocks, contributing additional hundreds of articles to the investment community. He previously oversaw the 24/7 Climate Insights site, managing editorial operations and content strategy, and currently oversees and creates content for My Investing News.

Trey's editorial expertise extends across multiple publishing environments. He served as production editor at Dearborn Financial Publishing and development editor at Kaplan, where he helped shape financial education materials. Earlier in his career, he worked as a writer-producer at SVE. His freelance editing portfolio includes work for prestigious clients such as Sage Publications, Rand McNally, the Institute for Supply Management, the American Library Association, Eggplant Literary Productions, and Spiegel.

Outside of financial journalism, Trey writes fiction and has been an active member of the writing community for years, overseeing a long-running critique group and moderating workshop sessions at regional conventions. He lives with his family in an old house in the Midwest.