Cash Passport: Coming Soon To A Canada Post Near You

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MasterCard and Canada Post are teaming to offer travellers an alternative to travelling with pockets full of cash – Cash Passport, a pre-paid Mastercard that can carry up to seven different currencies at any one time.

According to officials, it’s how money should travel. It’s secure, convenient and reloadable, and will be accepted anywhere Mastercard is accepted.

The new card will be available for purchase, at an initial cost of $15, come mid-February at one of 2,500 Canada-wide Canada Post retailers. Once owned, the card can be reloaded at any of 6,000 Canada Post outlets for a nominal fee of $3. There is a minimum $200 on reloads.

Cash Passport was soft-launched Wednesday night (Dec. 7) at a Mastercard event at the Manulife Centre in Toronto. Officials say the cards will be safe and secure, featuring a CHIP and PIN number.

“It has all the security and benefits of a credit card and accepted wherever Mastercard is accepted.”

Currencies that can be loaded on to Cash Passport will be Canadian, US, euros, British pounds, the yen, Australian dollars and pesos. And, once loaded, currency exchanges will be locked in, giving travellers peace of mind when it comes to budgeting.

Travellers will be able to use the pre-paid cards to pay for hotels, flights, excursions, gifts, souvenirs and meals in more than 200 countries, or withdraw local currency from ATMs. Lost or stolen cards will be replaced within 24 hours.