TSYS which is a middling card processor who has had their hands in prepaid since the beginning buys Netspend for $1.4 billion cash.
This gives Netspend a necessary piece for the vertical integration needed to stay competitive in the prepaid card market. Now they need a small bank to get that last piece to cut costs to the bone and a distribution partner for free or nearly free cash loads.
I can see both announcements soon before the end of the year. Some small undistinguished but healthy bank in Utah. On the free or nearly free cash reloads - watch for a national chain. 7-Eleven? Target? They could go nuclear and team up with a struggling USPS or maybe one of the banks that have not come out with their own deal - Bank America? Citizens?
Netspend becomes a serious player from this point forward.
