Wednesday, September 6, 2023
Commenting on BHN's partnership with Visa, disclosed Sept. 6, 2023, Roche said her company was determined to set an example by transitioning its prepaid product portfolio from plastic to more compostable paper-based materials. The partners will begin rolling out the products later this year in the United States, Canada and Australia, she stated.
"Our mission is to lead the prepaid and gift card industry's shift from plastic to more sustainable and responsibly sourced materials—and we're delivering," she said in a statement. "Collaborating with influential brands like Visa is helping us create a more sustainable payment card market."
Roche additionally noted that BHN's reach provides a global platform to pioneer change by reducing its footprint worldwide, doing the right thing for partners, customers and the planet. As a go-to partner for world-leading brands, she stated, BHN understands the importance of thoughtfully managing its role in the industry's supply chain and invites others to join ongoing efforts to reduce environmental impacts by distributing sustainable products.
Douglas Sabo, chief sustainability officer at Visa, affirmed that the partnership with BHN reflects Visa's commitment to advancing a sustainable and responsible business model.
"In addition to our own ongoing initiatives, joining BHN in its sustainability efforts is a way we can join forces for a greater collective good," he said. "We recognize that together with our partners we can achieve our goal of being an engine of sustainable commerce—including through sustainable payment cards."
Sabo went on to say that Visa's partnership with BHN will help transition the payments industry from plastic to paper-based, open-loop prepaid cards while proactively exploring additional opportunities to protect and preserve the earth.
As Visa and BHN representatives noted, environmental sustainability has been top of mind at both organizations for quite some time, even before the current partnership initiative.
For example, BHN noted that it began sourcing eco-friendly and recycled materials in 2017 and, in October 2022, publicly pledged to convert most plastic products to paper substrates by the end of 2024. This commitment gained broad support from global card brands, according to Jay Jaffin, chief marketing officer at BHN, who pointed out that the company distributes approximately 775 million gift cards across the globe annually.
"People are more aware than ever of how their behaviors, habits and lifestyles impact our environment, and millions are committed to reducing their environmental footprint," Jaffin said. We commend those efforts and want to continue to do our part in supporting them."
Visa representatives noted that the company achieved carbon neutrality in 2020 through energy efficiency initiatives that leverage renewable electricity and limited use of carbon offsets. The leading card brand added that with ESG projects spanning all major geographic regions, its efforts extend beyond payment card products to include forest preservation, reforestation, renewable energy and clean cookstoves. 
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