DES MOINES, Iowa — Retailers across the country may have posted a weaker December than they would have liked in 2007, but The Members Group reports a significantly stronger year for its gift card program.

The Members Group and TMG Card Services are CUSOs associated with the Iowa Credit Union League. The CUSO's ATIRA line of prepaid cards has offerings suitable for gifts, bonuses, and reloadable payroll cards.

According to Jeff Falk, director of product development for TMG, the organization saw gift card sales almost double in 2007 versus 2006.

“Credit union members are truly embracing Visa branded prepaid debit cards,” said Jeff Falk, director of product development for TMG. “The evidence is clearly in the total number of gift cards sold throughout the country during the past seven years. So, it's not surprising to see the numbers of our total cards sold double and the penetration per branch increase 20% over the 2006 holiday figures.”

Falk made mention of the more than $4 million loaded on almost 50,000 ATIRA gift cards, which averaged a $6 per-card increase over last year.