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Card recycling services

Closing the sustainability loop

Ensure every part of your customers’ payments journey is as sustainable as possible – with end-of-life recycling.

Our planet’s resources are strained. By 2030, the combined resources of two Earths won’t be enough to support projected increases in the global population. We must find ways to minimize our ecological impact—before it’s too late. 

Waste from plastics pollutes the environment when burned or discarded. Payment cards are an intrinsic part of the relationship that banks and fintechs have with their customers, so reducing or eliminating any waste and moving towards a circular payment card economy can help alleviate banks’ impact on our ecosystem.

500bn

From 2015 to 2021, we consumed 500 billion tonnes of virgin materials.

Why end-of-life recycling matters

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Virgin production is wasteful

90% of the materials we extract and use are wasted.

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Recycling is more energy efficient

Recycling an aluminum soda can is 95% less energy-intensive than creating one from scratch.

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Customers care

92% of customers will be more likely to trust a company that supports social or environmental issues.

Meeting the challenges of a circular payment card economy

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Knowledge

Leveraging the expertise of partners, from material selection to manufacturing and logistics, can help overcome the challenges of creating a sustainable issuance program.

Two puzzle pieces

Resources 

Not all banks will have the time or capacity required to manage adopting a circular approach to issuance fully. By working with a partner that offers a consultative and collaborative approach, banks can reduce in efficiencies in their current processes.

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Compliance 

Providers are usually more embedded in the sustainability ecosystem, with contacts across multiple organizations.

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Trust 

Partnering with the right organization, one that already has a significant reputation for sustainable innovation, can quickly help to improve the issuer’s brand perception. 

Pledge 2030

Learn how our clients have embraced a sustainable approach in their payment offerings, providing their customers with real, tangible demonstrations of their commitment to making every payment more sustainable:

2030

How we’re improving our sustainability

G+D has pledged to replace all virgin plastic in our payment card products by 203030. G+D is the first in the payment industry to make such a commitment and we anticipate that the industry will follow suit.

Sustainability at every stage of the payment journey

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Ensuring a more sustainable payment experience requires a top-level strategic approach so that every part of the journey is considered in the context of your wider business.
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Choosing the right, sustainable material for your payment cards – such as our range of recycled and industrially compostable cards – is a tangible demonstration of your eco-commitment.
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Choose recycled and recyclable paper or change your production methods to print-on-demand for increased sustainability.
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Reducing the amount of printed matter and exploring digital alternatives for carriers, PINS, and other parts of the payment process.
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The traditional issuance and payments experience can be transformed and enhanced with digital support. From helping customers make more eco-conscious purchasing decisions to digital PINs, we can help make payments 'greener.'
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Building an ecosystem of sustainability partners is critical to long-term success. We work with a growing range of eco-partners.
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The sustainability challenge requires that we work together to co-create and collaborate on new, eco-conscious payment solutions.
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Implementing a card recycling program allows your customers to participate in the circular economy, transforming used cards into new materials that can benefit the community.

How it works

Our range of recycling programs takes care of every stage of the process, offering various options that make sense for your sustainability strategy and end consumers.

1.  End customer education

Choose your education strategy. 
We'll help you to:

  • Encourage your customers to hand back their payment cards. 
  • Utilize different communication channels to spread the message. 
  • Highlight ecological reasons behind recycling and available return methods.
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2.  Card collection options

There are several ways we can support you and your customers in collecting expired payment cards: 

  • ATM collection, where a customer inserts their expired payment card. 
  • In-branch collection, where the customer hands their expired card over to a staff member. 
  • Collection buckets or boxes where customers drop off their expired payment cards. 
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3.  Transportation and consolidation 

Whether you work directly with one of our recycling partners or rely on G+D to transport and consolidate your customers’ expired payment cards, you can be sure that they will be transported and collated securely and efficiently. 

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4.  Data security 

We work to provide a safe, sustainable, and secure recycling and disposal solution tailored to the issuer's geography and specific needs. All cards are deactivated upon receipt and later shredded to ensure that physical information from the card itself cannot be stolen and used. 

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5.  Card recycling process 

We offer different approaches to how the card is recycled and to what extent a bank wants to be involved in the results of the recycled materials.

We collate, store, 
secure, and transport the cards to the recycling partner, with post-recycling analytics, and the chance to collaborate on bespoke recycling projects. 

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The recycling outcome

Once recycled, the plastic from payment cards can be repurposed into a wide variety of objects, for example:

 

Small household items

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Backpacks

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Coolers

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Lawn furniture

 

Objects to enhance the community

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Benches and planters

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Picnic tables

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Childrens’ play equipment

 

Business items

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Whiteboard markers

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Waste paper bins

Explore the many ways we can help you to achieve your ESG goals

G+D credit cards: Convego Parley Ocean, Convego Natural and Convego Recycled
Convego® Beyond

We believe that the power for change lies in the hands of the consumer, and the power to shape a new consumer mindset towards a more sustainable lifestyle also lies in our hands.

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More Accessible Payments Offering

Explore a suite of card, digital and onboarding solutions that can help you to deliver a more accessible, convenient and secure payment experience to your end-customers. Another step toward social sustainability in your ESG journey!

Get in touch

If you have any questions about our end-to-end business solutions or about our SecurityTech company, seek expert advice, or want to give us your feedback, our team is here to support you, anytime.