Gift Cards for Online Marketplaces: One Card, Many Sellers

Can an online marketplace run a gift card program without building the infrastructure behind it? Yes — and for many marketplaces that is the difference between launching the program and postponing it indefinitely.

The Issuing Problem for Online-Only Retailers

Businesses that never had a store also never had a card platform. Building one in-house means owning issuing, activation, redemption, clearing and reporting. Subcontracting it means managing several providers, each covering a different market segment, for what the customer experiences as one card. Both routes slow the launch and add cost that has nothing to do with selling.

A Gateway, Not a Middleman

Ogloba issues the marketplace's own branded cards from a platform already supporting prepaid transactions in more than 60 countries, connecting directly to existing POS cash registers rather than through an intermediary. Transactions and financial flows clear daily, and more than 50 report types are available on demand through a web service interface — so the marketplace team can concentrate on marketing and selling.

Reaching the Customers Cash Still Serves

The same platform opens a channel online distribution cannot. Where shoppers prefer cash or hesitate to enter card details online, prepaid marketplace cards sold in small local stores convert cash into online spending power. In Indonesia alone that is a potential network of over 20,000 POS locations.

One program, sold on the marketplace, in third-party stores, and wherever the customer already pays.

FAQ

What does an online-only retailer have to own if it issues cards itself?

Issuing, activation, redemption, clearing and reporting — the whole chain. Subcontracting instead means managing several providers, each covering a different market segment, for what the customer experiences as one card.

Does connecting to store checkouts require an intermediary?

No. The platform connects directly to existing POS cash registers, which is what makes it a gateway rather than another party in the middle.

How does a marketplace card reach shoppers who prefer to pay in cash?

Prepaid marketplace cards sold in small local stores turn cash into online spending power. In Indonesia alone that is a potential network of over 20,000 POS locations.

What reporting does the marketplace team get?

More than 50 report types on demand through a web service interface, with transactions and financial flows clearing daily.