The town of Gorey in Jersey. Image: © dbrnjhrj/Stock.adobe.com
Through a partnership with Prepaid Financial Services, the government of Jersey is sending all eligible citizens prepaid cards with £100 to spend at businesses across the island.
Today (10 September), Prepaid Financial Services announced that it is partnering with the government of Jersey on a new “spend local” initiative.
The Meath-based company, which was recently acquired by EML Payments, will enable 105,000 prepaid Mastercards to be sent to the people of Jersey in a bid to encourage local spending. It is part of a £150m fiscal stimulus package in Jersey to help alleviate the economic hardship caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
All eligible citizens in Jersey will be sent their own £100 prepaid card that they can use in businesses across the island until the end of October. People who cannot leave their homes during the pandemic can use the funds with local businesses that accept Mastercard payments over phone.
After October, cardholders are being advised to retain their prepaid card in the event that there could be another stimulus package announced in the future. Prepaid Financial Services turned the plan around in four weeks and it has been designed to work with any government in Europe.
Helping local businesses
Senator John Le Fondré, chief minister of Jersey, said: “This scheme will give islanders a positive way to support local businesses that have worked hard to adapt to the impact of Covid-19 and look after their customers in a safe way.
“The pandemic caused businesses across all sectors in Jersey to suffer. And while the government has provided support through a range of measures, this scheme allows islanders the opportunity to go out and treat themselves by supporting local island businesses.”
Lee Britton, CCO at EML-owned Prepaid Financial Services, added: “We’ve enjoyed bringing a fresh-thinking fintech solution to life for families in the beautiful island of Jersey. The government’s island-centric spend-local aspirations aligned perfectly with our payment solutions suite.”
Various initiatives have been introduced by different governments to encourage consumers to spend with local businesses that may have been impacted by Covid-19. In Ireland, a Stay and Spend scheme is being introduced to enable people to claim tax back on spending in the hospitality sector. An Eat Out to Help Out scheme ran in the UK last month, where a 50pc discount was given on food and non-alcoholic drinks in hospitality businesses on off-peak days of the week.
