US Bank recently announced that it is the number one issuer of Visa branded gift cards. An analysis of their gift card fees shows that they are even worse than everyone’s least favorite gift card, the All-Access gift card. The US Bank Visa gift card starts charging a $2.50 monthly fee ONLY six months after issuance, charges $0.50 for every call (after the first two) to the AUTOMATED balance check number, strictly prohibits resale of US Bank gift cards (huh?), and charges $15 to replace a lost or stolen gift card.

Is it just me, or are gift card companies getting even more brazen with their high fees? Perhaps they feel that because they have escaped regulation thus far, anything goes.