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Dual-interface credit and debit card sales lifted CPI Card Group Inc.’s second-quarter sales figure, the company reported Wednesday.
As the nation’s issuers increase their orders for the near-field communications-equipped chip cards—the cards can be dipped into a point-of-sale terminal or tapped against compatible devices to do a transaction—Littleton, Colo.-based CPI is seeing some benefit.
In the quarter, CPI reported $51.1 million in U.S. debit and credit card sales, up 16.7% from $43.8 million a year ago. CPI’s prepaid debit sales in the quarter totaled $16 million, up 3.9% from $15.4 million. In its earnings release, CPI attributed the increases to a double-digital percentage increase in EMV card manufacturing volumes, “propelled by dual-interface EMV cards, as well as higher card personalization and fulfillment sales.”
Card makers, in general, may experience a bit of a boon as the dual-interface conversion continues. In July, Visa Inc. forecast the number of its contactless cards will reach 300 million by the end of 2020. The brand’s earlier forecast called for 100 million by the of 2019. Even contact-only EMV cards have more room to grow. EMVCo, the payment standards body, said 53.5% of U.S. card-present transactions in 2018 were chip-on-chip, meaning both the card and point-of-sale terminal were EMV-enabled. By comparison, the figure is 97.8% for much of Western Europe.
Overall, CPI had $66.9 million in second-quarter revenue, up 8.8% from $61.5 million. Its net income reversed from a $16.7 million loss to a $1.5 million gain.
In related news, Atlanta-based payments provider EVO Payments Inc. on Wednesday reported second-quarter adjusted revenue of $150 million, up 6% from $140.9 million in the year-ago period. Reported revenue for the quarter was $122.5 million. “We are pleased with our business and financial performance in the second quarter and the first half of the year,” said chief executive James G. Kelly, in a statement.
EVO, which historically has maintained strong operations in overseas markets, pointed to advances abroad achieved in the quarter. “We announced a new 10-year, exclusive joint venture with Bci in Chile to expand our distribution further into Latin America,” Kelly said. “We also continued to develop our tech-enabled capabilities in our international markets, such as Mexico, Spain, and Ireland, to complement our strong bank-referral channels.”
Bci is Santiago-based Banco de Credito e Inversiones, which has issued more than 2.5 million payment cards and maintains operations in Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Brazil, and China, as well as the state of Florida.
