A recent story from North Carolina's Gaston Gazette featured an overview of prepaid cards. According to Kirsten Trusko, the president and executive director of the Network Branded Prepaid Card Association, the recession has led many consumers to use the cards as a tool for budgeting.
"We're now seeing folks who have bank accounts and checking accounts but are now buying these cards to force them to budget and track their spending," Trusko told the paper.