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Analysts are skeptical about Visa Inc.'s plans to enable consumers to reload Visa prepaid cards at ATMs that accept envelope-free deposits (CardLine, 9/25). Ed Bachelder, Hitachi Consulting Corp. director, says the service could appeal to financial institutions because it gives consumers another use for ATMs, but he believe the limited number of ATMs that accept deposits without envelopes means it will take some time before the service is widely available. "It's going to be quite a while before this becomes a mainstream market activity." Banks and credit unions may have deployed as many as 4,000 ATMs that can accept deposits without envelopes, Bachelder says, citing Hitachi estimates. There are more than 415,000 ATMs in the United States, according to CardLine sister publication ATM&Debit News.
