Gift Cards Market Size, Market Share, Application Analysis, Regional Outlook, Growth Trends, Key Players, Competitive Strategies and Forecasts, 2018 To 2026

Gift Cards Market (Type – Open Loop Gift Cards, Closed Loop Gift Cards and E-gifting; Merchant Type – Department Stores, Restaurants, Food Supermarkets, Coffee Shops, Discount Stores, Entertainment and Hotels) – Growth, Future Prospects and Competitive Analysis, 2018 – 2026, the global gift cards market is expected to hit US$ 750 Bn by 2026.

Market Insights
Gift cards have emerged as an effective way to wish someone on festive occasions or thank someone in appreciation of their work. It facilitates the recipient to make purchase of their choice. Gift cards are prepaid payment card containing a specific amount of money and render the same role as that of paper gift cards. Earlier, the use of gift cards were mostly limited to North America and Europe. However, with growing consumer awareness, its use has expanded beyond its traditional markets and are now popular in regions such as Asia Pacific and Latin America. Countries such as China and India have witnessed a boom in the gift cards market in recent years owing to growing consumer awareness and purchase options. Starbucks was one of the notable brands revolutionizing the concept of gift cards in the U.S. and its popularity has increased manifold over the years.

One of the most prominent factors contributing to the market growth is increasing demand for gift cards in the corporate sector. Corporate houses, in recognition of an employee’s contribution to the firm, are presenting gift cards. This trend has become widely prevalent in recent times thus influencing the market growth positively. Another prominent factor aiding the market growth is the advent of e-commerce. E-commerce websites such as Amazon, Alibaba, eBay and Flipkart among others offer customers gift cards. With growing penetration of internet and smartphones, people are in a better position to access e-commerce portals than ever before, a factor complimenting the gift cards market growth. Moreover, the fact that giving cash as a gift is considered socially inappropriate is further complimenting the market growth for gift cards. Furthermore, as gift cards enable the recipient to purchase any product of his/her choice, therefore its adoption is increasing by the day.

In recent years, there has been a growing confidence and trust among consumers regarding mobile retail and payment applications as far as gift cards are concerned. Moreover, traceable gift cards have become popular in the recent past which allow merchants to acquire an array of important data. Furthermore, virtual gift cards as a result of its low cost when compared to plastic gift cards, have become popular in recent years. In addition, reloadable gift cards are expected to offer significant growth opportunities for the gift cards market to further flourish.

Key Trends

• Open loop gift cards growing in popularity.


• Issuers of gift cards are focusing on expansion of their participating merchant network


• Growing trend of traceable gift cards


• Mobile apps increasingly being used to store gift cards


• E-gifting gaining in prominence


• Gift cards emerging as a popular gifting option for festive occasions and birthdays

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