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Treasury's Stored Value Card Program Surpasses $5 Billion

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Department of the Treasury, Financial Management Service's (FMS's) Stored Value Card (SVC) program surpassed the $5 billion mark recently in electronic currency processed.

Begun in 1997 by the U.S. Treasury and Army as a small test of emerging technology using card-based solutions, the SVC program today serves the Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force with smart-card technology that enables them to reduce or eliminate cash in areas which are remote, dangerous, or difficult to service.

"We are proud of FMS's partnership with the Department of Defense on this electronic solution that has now provided more than 5 million SVC cards to the men and women who serve our nation," said David A. Lebryk, FMS commissioner. "Military cardholders benefit from the increased security, flexibility and convenience of SVC's electronic currency – all part of Treasury's All-Electronic initiative to improve government efficiency and to reduce paper-based transactions."

The SVC program is made up of three distinct applications: EZpay, EagleCash and Navy and Marine Cash. To date, the SVC program has issued more than 5.4 million cards to members of the military (2.5 million EZpay to Army, Air Force and Marines; 1.7 million EagleCash to U.S. Armed Forces Overseas; and 1.2 million Navy and Marine Cash to Navy and Marines). It is a card-based financial instrument, which functions like a pre-paid debit card, but which can be customized by the issuer to meet specific business requirements. Additionally, there are no fees associated with the product.

"The SVC program has enabled us to assist the U.S. military with their cash management processes, the transformation of financial transactions from cash to electronic, and the avoidance of having to source, transport, secure, and disburse billions of dollars in physical currency," Commissioner Lebryk said.

Now with a global footprint at military bases worldwide, in peace-keeping and contingency operation areas, the SVC program relies on the close collaboration of FMS with each of the U.S. military branches, numerous other federal agencies that support the military, technology providers, and two Treasury Financial Agent banks that provide back-office services (the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and JPMorgan Chase).

For more information on the SVC program, visit fms.treas.gov/storedvalue.