Ready Financial Merger With AccountNow® Brings ezTaxReturn.com e-Filing and Quick Tax Refunds to READYdebit® Visa Prepaid Card

SAN RAMON, Calif., Jan. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The combined company, operating as AccountNow, Inc., while retaining both the READYdebit® and AccountNowbrands, is off to a fast start. AccountNow, Inc., one of the nation's largest prepaid card companies, merged with consumer payments innovator Ready Financial Group, Inc. in June of 2011. Jim Jones, CEO of AccountNow, today announced that its very successful partnership with well respected online tax preparation company, ezTaxReturn.com , will now enable READYdebit® Visa Prepaid Card customers to e-file their tax returns from www.READYdebit.com, effective immediately.

READYdebit® Visa Prepaid Card customers can now receive the one of the fastest tax refunds available, in as little as eight days from filing. That's six to eight weeks faster than waiting for the U.S. Treasury to mail a refund check.  Plus, it eliminates any uncertainty of postal delivery and avoids additional check cashing or load fees for having tax refund money added to card accounts.

"Most visitors to www.READYdebit.com  will be able to complete their tax return and e-file it in 30 minutes or less.  It's fast, secure and easy... and what could be more convenient than having your tax refund added to your READYdebit®Visa Prepaid Card," said Will Tumulty, chief marketing officer of AccountNow, Inc.

Taxpayers don't need an account to get started.  Visitors to either www.READYdebit.com or www.AccountNow.com follow simple on-screen prompts to file their tax return and have their refund loaded into a prepaid card. Consumers only pay for the service if they use it to e-file their return and satisfaction is guaranteed or they get their money back.  Tax refunds are automatically loaded onto a branded prepaid card backed by the Visa Zero Liability™ policy*. Many prepaid card customers say it helps them manage their finances by separating their refund from other funds to track and monitor how the refund is spent, whether that is online bill pay or any other purpose.   

Ronald Leder of ezTaxReturn.com is excited by extending the AccountNow partnership to READYdebit®Visa Prepaid Card customers.  "Serving customers better, faster and more affordably is always a winning strategy; collaborating with industry leading partners is how that happens," he said.

*The Visa Zero Liability policy covers U.S.–issued cards only and does not apply to ATM transactions, PIN transactions not processed by Visa, or certain commercial card transactions. Cardholder must notify issuer promptly of any unauthorized use. Consult issuer for additional details or visit www.visa.com/security.

About AccountNow, Inc.

AccountNow (www.accountnow.com), headquartered in San Ramon, California, is a leading provider of financial solutions for the 40 million U.S. consumers who do not have established banking relationships.  AccountNow provides consumers a convenient and affordable alternative to traditional checking accounts and access to financial payments systems including Visa and MasterCard prepaid cards, online bill payment, card-to-card transfers and FDIC insured deposits.

ezTaxReturn.com (www.ezTaxReturn.com), was founded in 1999 to make filing taxes quick, easy, convenient and inexpensive for American taxpayers.  Their team includes tax experts, communications specialists, economists and software developers who understand taxes and how to simplify them for consumers.  ezTaxReturn.com provides a faster, easier, more secure tax and stress-free preparation and e-file experience.

The READYdebit Visa Prepaid Card is issued by The Bancorp Bank pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. and can be used wherever Visa debit cards are accepted.  The Bancorp Bank; Member FDIC.

SOURCE AccountNow, Inc.