Orman’s novel offering
Financial guru Suze Orman has launched her own prepaid debit card, even though such cards have “drawn criticism for sky-high fees and poor disclosure,” said Ron Lieber in The New York Times. Prepaid cards are typically marketed to people who don’t have checking accounts or access to credit. What makes Orman’s plastic different? Her $3 monthly fee is fairly standard, though she has negotiated ATM fees that “are about as low as they come.” But the “most noteworthy” aspect of the new card is that it gives users access to their credit scores and reports, which Orman has exhorted her TV viewers to follow more closely. She is also allowing credit agency TransUnion to collect spending data, a first step in making debit-card purchases count toward establishing creditworthiness. Today, Orman says, “we are rewarding people for having credit and punishing people who pay in cash. I want to change that paradigm.”
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