Network Branded Prepaid Card Association Gears Up For Its Annual "Power Of Prepaid Conference" June 26-28, 2013

MONTVALE, N.J., June 20, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- After a well-attended inaugural debut last year, the Network Branded Prepaid Card Association (NBPCA) is excited to host its second annual Power of Prepaid Conference. Held June 26-28 at the Gaylord National Hotel and Convention Center in Washington, DC, the conference attracts key players and those with the most impact on the industry, from members of Congress, regulators and law enforcement officials, to business leaders and consumer advocates. All join for 3 days of unique and frank discussions and exchanges of ideas on the issues and opportunities affecting the prepaid and emerging payments industry.

"Prepaid is experiencing rapid growth and there are headwinds to address.  As the industry's trade association, the NBPCA believes it's imperative to connect high-level industry and government leaders for frank, in-person discussions and an opportunity to focus on communication and collaboration for the greater good of all involved, and our constituents," said Kirsten Trusko, NBPCA President.

"Through three tracks – Evolution and Innovation, Advocacy and Government – fresh research and perspectives will be shared on how best to serve our customers (consumers, corporations and government) in ways that only prepaid uniquely does. Industry leaders will share insights on managing prepaid businesses in today's regulatory and economic environment. Policy-makers and members of Congress will offer their viewpoints on trends and critical topics within prepaid," added Trusko.

New research will be released by Alliance for Stabilizing Our Communities (ASOC), Bretton Woods, Inc. and Linkage Research & Consulting, Inc. ASOC (with La Raza, National Urban League, and others) will give a sneak preview of an 18-month, multi-state consumer financial literacy survey. G. Michael Flores, President and CEO Bretton Woods, will preview findings from his 2013 Analysis of Branded General Purpose Reloadable Prepaid Cards, an annual comparative cost analysis of prepaid cards, basic checking accounts and cash. This year the report will include new data from a wide span of programs and the fees consumers are actually paying.  Additionally, Linkage Research will share its recent survey of prepaid consumers' borrowing habits, including usage patterns (frequency, amount and purpose), source of funds borrowed and repayment times.

Founding sponsors include: The Bancorp Bank, Blackhawk Network, FIS, Galileo Processing, InComm, MasterCard, Meta Payment Systems and TSYS. In addition to offering conference participants unique networking opportunities and unprecedented industry insight, the conference agenda uniquely features government leaders that have the most influence on prepaid.

Distinguished speakers and guests include:

• Honorable Bill Huizenga (R-MI), House Financial Services Committee
• Honorable Mick Mulvaney (R-SC5), House Financial Services Committee
• Natalie H. Diana, Senior Counsel, Office of Chief Counsel, Financial Management Service, 
U.S. Department of the Treasury
• Walt Henderson, Director of the EFT Strategy Division, Financial Management Service, 
U.S. Department of the Treasury
• Melissa S. Koide, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Consumer Policy, U.S. Department of the Treasury
• James Gaughran, Deputy Assistant Inspector, Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General and International President of International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators (IAFCI)
• Timothy P. Leary, Senior Special Anti-Money Laundering Examiner, Division of Banking Supervision and Regulation, Federal Reserve Board
• Gerard W. LiVigni, Senior Compliance Officer, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), U.S. Department of the Treasury
• Seetha Ramachandran, Deputy Chief, Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section, U.S. Department of Justice

NBPCA has partnered with the American Conference Institute (ACI) to produce the Power of Prepaid Conference. ACI is a leading conference provider, specializing in working with associations and the prepaid card industry. More information can be found at www.PrepaidEvent.com and Linkedin and Twitter.

About the NBPCA
The Network Branded Prepaid Card Association (NBPCA) is a non-profit, inter-industry trade association that supports the growth and success of network branded prepaid debit cards and represents the common interests of the many players in this new and rapidly growing payments category. For additional information visit www.NBPCA.org, or follow us on Twitter.

About American Conference Institute
A unique organization, American Conference Institute is devoted to providing the business intelligence that senior decision-makers need to respond to challenges both here in the US, and around the world. Staffed by industry specialists, lawyers and other professionals, American Conference Institute operates as a think tank, monitoring trends and developments in all major industry sectors with a view to providing information on the leading edge. For additional information, visit www.AmericanConference.com, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter, or call us at 888-224-2480.

SOURCE Network Branded Prepaid Card Association (NBPCA)