Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Green Dot Buys eCommLink

Monrovia-based Green Dot, the provider of prepaid debit cards headed by Steve Streit, said Tuesday that it has acquired prepaid processing firm eCommLink, for $2.5M. Greent Dot said the asset deal included certain processing and hardware assets of eCommLink, which handles transaction processing for prepaid cards. The company explained the deal will allow it to bring in key elements of transaction processing in-house, as part of a strategy for vertical integration. Green Dot said that approximately one third of its total processing expenses are paid to payment processors, which will be reduced by having its own in-house card issuing and processing capability. The company does not expect to start using its own processing services until the end of a two-year outsource processing agreement it currently has with TSYS.