BlackboardPay, a student prepaid card program, has received a 2013 Paybefore Award in the Best Consumer Value category. The award is recognition in the worldwide prepaid and emerging payments industry.

BlackboardPay previously won a Paybefore Award in 2011 in the Best Government Funded Prepaid Program category. This year’s winners were selected from a record number of entries by a panel of industry experts.

BlackboardPay helps higher education institutions reduce the administrative expense associated with disbursing student financial aid, work-study, student payroll and other funds. The card program was recognized for its ability to protect students from overdraft exposure and PIN debit fees while providing robust account features and protections.

BlackboardPay gives account holders immediate access to their funds without having to wait for a paper check or an ACH disbursement. Powered by First Data’s Money Network, the account is FDIC-insured.

As a component of the Blackboard Transact platform, students at participating institutions can use the prepaid card account, integrated with their student ID card, to make purchases everywhere Discover is accepted. Cardholders can also make fee-free withdrawals at on-campus ATMs and more than 50,000 surcharge-free Allpoint ATM locations around the world.