Digital Currency: An Opportunity for the Postal Service?

"The Postal Service already offers money orders and some wire transfer options. Should it expand into digital currency?" the Office of the USPS Inspector General wants to know.

A newly released OIG white paper Digital Currency: Opportunity for the Postal Service looks into the world of digital payments to identify a possible role for the Postal Service.

According to an entry on the Inspector General's website, "The paper finds the Postal Service is well positioned to expand into new digital currency products, such as prepaid cards, and offers some suggestions for implementation."

The white paper points out, "Promoting the financial inclusion of the unbanked and underbanked population could be an important part of the traditional Postal Service’s mission of “binding the nation together.” Embracing new payment technologies to adapt its products and services to the changing needs of these customers would be the natural evolution of its role."

It goes on to say, "Some foreign posts have already launched prepaid card services successfully.For example, the Italian Post is the leader in the Italian prepaid card market. Its low-cost prepaid card services generated revenues of $124 million in 2010, or about 2 percent of total revenues from financial services."

To read the entire report, click here.