Spanish bank la Caixa will be the first online distributor in Spain of virtual gift cards and digital content code numbers (PINs) for leading brands such as Spotify, Xbox and Sony PlayStation. Barcelona-based la Caixa said it is also the first Spanish bank to sell virtual gift cards and digital content code numbers.

La Caixa has signed an agreement with ePay, the prepaid card subsidiary of U.S.-based Euronet Worldwide, to sell virtual prepaid cards and content code numbers on its Linea Abierta (open line) online banking channel and its MoneyToPay website. MoneyToPay is la Caixa's electronic money and prepaid card division.

MoneyToPay's products cover a wide range of customer segments from young people, families, people wanting prepaid cards for specific uses such as travel or household expenses, gift cards and corporate prepaid cards.

Customers can use their smartphones to activate, top up and check transaction records for prepaid cards they have bought from MoneyToPay's website. MoneyToPay said it plans to launch a service enabling customers to purchase prepaid cards using their smartphones.

According to la Caixa, 15 percent of customer purchases take place via the Internet. The bank has 3.15 million customers who made e-commerce purchases in 2013.

La Caixa said prepaid cards are becoming increasingly popular in Spain for online purchases. Its CaixaBank retail banking subsidiary currently has 600,000 active digital wallets in issue containing prepaid cards used for online shopping.

Earlier this month, La Caixa announced it will launch an NFC payment service in Spain in partnership with Telefónica, Vodafone, Orange and Visa Europe.

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