Newest Prepaid Card Celebrity Sponsor? Magic Johnson

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Magic Johnson became the latest celebrity to enter the prepaid debit card market, after unveiling the aptly-named MAGIC MasterCard on Tuesday.

The former basketball star said in a press release he launched the card, in partnership with OneWest Bank, to help customers without traditional bank accounts “function in today’s society.”

While the card contains a fairly competitive fee structure, it’s not exactly a game changer.

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Like Chase’s virtually fee-free Liquid card, launched earlier this year, the MAGIC card carries a $4.95 monthly fee. However, it also carries a $4.95 activation fee and a 50-cent bank teller fee.

The monthly fee is higher than some of the card’s major competitors and lower than others. Wal-Mart Money Card and Suze Orman’s Approved Card both carry $3 monthly fees, while Green Dot, Mango Financial and RushCard charge $5.95, $5 and $9.95.

However, both Green Dot and Mango Financial will waive monthly fees if cardholders meet certain load requirements each month.

MAGIC Cardholders are entitled to two free out-of-network ATM withdrawals a month. After that, each will cost $2.50. In-network ATMs can be used for free. They also get one free live customer service call each month, after which they will be charged $2.

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Cardholders can carry up to $10,000 on the card. Maximum daily purchases are limited to $1,500 a day. Cardholders can withdraw up to $500 from an ATM, bank branch or retail outlet daily. There’s also maximum load limits of $5,000 a day and $10,000 a month.

Money can be added for free via direct deposit or from a bank account. Cardholders can also load money via a Green Dot Money Pack for $4.95 a load.

MAGIC card is partnering with PiggyMojo, an online savings tool, to help cardholders put money toward a specific goal. However, the feature is meant purely as a savings tool. It currently doesn’t feature a rewards program.

Image: LifeSupercharger, via Flickr