There's So Much Money on Starbucks Gift Cards That the Company Could Be a Mid-Sized Bank

Starbucks gift cards are handy. If you're not sure what to give someone for a gift, hand him a pre-paid Starbucks card. It's quick and convenient for both parties, provided that the recipient lives near a Starbucks.
If you don't actually spend your gift cards, then they accumulate. I have a couple right now that have money on them. For a worldwide company that sells $10 billion USD a year, those cards add up. Right now, about $1.2 billion is parked on Starbucks cards and its app. The Huffington Post reports:

If Starbucks were a bank, that amount of deposits would make it a respectable midsize institution.
An astounding number of customers eschew dollars for money on card and the app. Between the U.S. and Canada, 41 percent of transactions at retail locations involved a Starbucks card, and 24 percent involved the mobile app, according to Marketwatch.