With 24.8 million boys and girls age 12-17 representing a total yearly income of $80 billion, today's trendy and hyper-brand-aware teens are prime targets for plastic - debit, credit, and gift cards that is! Yet, according to Teens, Money, Payment Cards and Financial Services in the U.S., a new report from Packaged Facts, for financial institutions it's not the profits these teens generate in the short term that's most important.

Making a long-term investment in the adults these consumers will become, including more exciting and hip services for the 16.4 million teens currently using them and attracting the 5.2 million teens who don't, is crucial to maintaining viable, long-term market growth.

Teens represent a wide open market for financial marketers. 47.4% of teens age 12-17 have a savings account, 11.6% have a checking account, 15% have an ATM card and 3.5% have a credit card in their own name. But teens' immaturity and often unrealistic expectations of their own imminent wealth lead parents and educators to encourage teen saving but to doubt that other financial products-especially those that facilitate spending-are in the best interests of their kids. Gift cards appear to be one of the safer introductions to the world of paying with plastic.

"A whopping 95% of teens between the ages of 14 and 19 have either bought or received a gift card, with some 48% of college-bound teens purchasing cards rather than gifts for friends and family throughout the year," states Tatjana Meerman, the publisher of Packaged Facts. "This shows the enormous potential for tapping into teens with myriad other financial services."