Green Dot Turns Into Target as Prepaid Cards Take Hold: Real M&A

Green Dot Corp., the largest U.S. seller of prepaid debit cards, is offering potential buyers the biggest bargain in one of the fastest-growing areas of consumer finance.

Green Dot’s market value fell by almost two-thirds this year to $473 million as increased competition from rivals such as American Express Co. threatens its hold on card sales at retailers including Wal-Mart Stores Inc. That’s left the Monrovia, California-based company trading at 2.4 times earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, the cheapest in the U.S. consumer-finance industry, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.