Just 2½ years after it was introduced, celebrity personal finance adviser Suze Orman’s prepaid debit card is being retired.
The Approved Card, which has a monthly $3 account maintenance fee, was marketed toward budget-challenged consumers. Orman said she hoped her card would eventually help people build credit — something that prepaid cards do not do today. According to The Huffington Post:
One of her big initial goals when she launched the card was to have cardholder spending activity reported to TransUnion, one of the three major credit bureaus. … However, Orman’s ultimate dream of credit bureaus factoring prepaid card activity into consumers’ credit scores has never materialized.
A number of prepaid cards have had celebrity endorsers. Remember the short-lived Kardashian card? Some had ridiculously high fees, but Orman’s was more consumer-friendly. It will be discontinued on July 1, the day after Magic Johnson’s prepaid card dies.
Neither Orman nor Johnson have said why their cards are being discontinued, Consumerist said.
Bancorp Bank, Orman’s partner on the venture, is encouraging card customers to spend the money they still have on the card before July 1. All remaining funds will by returned via check to customers.
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