Canonical URL: https://giftcard.news/gift-cards/bhn-matter-ima-gift-card-award-july-2026/

---
description: Why BHN’s Matter award matters: subscription software, Tango gift-card fulfilment and the commercial logic of embedding employee rewards.
title: BHN and Matter win 2026 IMA Excellence in Gift Cards award
image: https://giftcard.news/images/social/v1/bhn-wins-ima-gift-card-award-matter-s-employee-rewards-programme-87cbd441e432764931fcac11376eac0c.jpg
---

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# BHN wins IMA gift card award for Matter’s employee rewards programme

BHN’s 2026 award for Matter highlights how employee recognition software uses an external gift-card catalogue, with a partnership dating to 2022.

By [Suzie Elis](https://giftcard.news/author/suzie-elis/) July 22, 2026 4 min read [ Google News ](https://google.com/preferences/source?q=giftcard.news&utm%5Fsource=giftcard.news&utm%5Fcampaign=giftcard.news) 

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![Official Tango illustration combining a recipient using her phone with reward brand cards](https://giftcard.news/images/variants/v1/bhn-wins-ima-gift-card-award-matter-s-employee-rewards-programme-official-w1246.webp) 

 Tango’s official illustration accompanying its Matter customer case study. The programme received IMA’s 2026 gift card award. Photo: Tango / Blackhawk Network 

[Blackhawk Network](https://giftcard.news/company/blackhawk-network/) has won the [Incentive Marketing Association](https://giftcard.news/organization/incentive-marketing-association/)’s 2026 gift card award for the employee rewards programme it supports at [Matter](https://giftcard.news/company/matter/). Announced on July 22, the award recognises an established service: Matter connected to [Tango](https://giftcard.news/company/tango/) in March 2022, years before this recognition. [\[S01\]](https://giftcard.news/gift-cards/bhn-matter-ima-gift-card-award-july-2026/#article-source-1) [\[S02\]](https://giftcard.news/gift-cards/bhn-matter-ima-gift-card-award-july-2026/#article-source-2)

The arrangement puts gift cards inside employee recognition software, where colleagues already exchange feedback and recognition. Matter provides the workplace experience; Tango supplies the reward catalogue and fulfilment infrastructure. That division of labour explains more about the partnership than the trophy alone.

## Software access, reward funding and the awarded integration

Matter launched in 2017\. Its Tango case study describes a reseller relationship in which employees exchange the platform’s Coins for gift cards through an automated API connection. Matter’s founder said international availability and confidence in an established provider influenced the choice. The decision was therefore about operational reach and supplier reliability, as well as the rewards themselves. [\[S02\]](https://giftcard.news/gift-cards/bhn-matter-ima-gift-card-award-july-2026/#article-source-2)

Matter sells workplace software through subscription plans tied to connected users. Its pricing documentation separates software charges from the money customers allocate to rewards. An employer is buying both a system for running recognition and, when it funds rewards, purchasing power that employees can redeem. [\[S04\]](https://giftcard.news/gift-cards/bhn-matter-ima-gift-card-award-july-2026/#article-source-4)

The public pricing page observed on October 19, 2026 makes that separation concrete. Basic costs USD 1 per connected user per month when billed annually, or USD 2 when billed monthly. Pro, which adds gift-card rewards and challenges, is USD 3 on the annual commitment or USD 4 on monthly billing. These are current advertised software rates, not historical July award prices or the reward budget. [\[S04\]](https://giftcard.news/gift-cards/bhn-matter-ima-gift-card-award-july-2026/#article-source-4)

The data behind the story 

### Matter’s published software rates, observed October 19, 2026

Advertised monthly-equivalent prices for connected users under two billing commitments. Basic supplies recognition features; Pro adds reward access. Reward value is charged separately.

 Annual billing commitment: advertised monthly-equivalent rateMonthly billing: monthly rate 

USD per connected user per month

Tap or hover for details. Select a series above to show or hide it.

Source 

Matter, complete pricing page and billing FAQ, observed October 19, 2026

Current advertised subscription prices, not prices established for July’s award or a measure of customer spending. Annual and monthly commitments differ. Rewards, the Surveys add-on, HRIS fees and custom Enterprise terms are outside these rates. Connected Slack or Teams channel members determine billing; the full company workforce is not automatically the billable population.

Show data tableHide data table 

Scroll left or right to see all columns 

__Matter’s published software rates, observed October 19, 2026 (USD per connected user per month)__
| Category                         | Annual billing commitment: advertised monthly-equivalent rate | Monthly billing: monthly rate      |
| -------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------- |
| Basic recognition plan           | 1 USD per connected user per month                            | 2 USD per connected user per month |
| Pro recognition and rewards plan | 3 USD per connected user per month                            | 4 USD per connected user per month |

Matter says billing follows members in a connected [Slack](https://giftcard.news/company/slack/) or Teams channel

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## In this article

### Companies

* [Blackhawk Network](https://giftcard.news/company/blackhawk-network/)
* [Matter](https://giftcard.news/company/matter/)
* [Microsoft](https://giftcard.news/company/microsoft/)
* [Slack](https://giftcard.news/company/slack/)
* [Tango](https://giftcard.news/company/tango/)

### Organizations

* [Incentive Marketing Association](https://giftcard.news/organization/incentive-marketing-association/)

### Sources and documents

* [\[S01\] IMA announces 2026 Excellence Award winners, July 22, 2026](https://www.usegiftcards.org/IMA/News/Press-Release/2026/IMA-Announces-2026-Excellence-Award-Winners.aspx?utm%5Fsource=giftcard.news&utm%5Fcampaign=giftcard.news) — Incentive Marketing Association
* [\[S02\] Matter and Tango: employee recognition and digital reward integration](https://www.tangocard.com/case-studies/matter?utm%5Fsource=giftcard.news&utm%5Fcampaign=giftcard.news) — Tango
* [\[S03\] 2026 IMA Summit Awards and gift card category criteria](https://www.incentivemarketing.org/ITC/IMA/Awards/Awards.aspx?utm%5Fsource=giftcard.news&utm%5Fcampaign=giftcard.news) — Incentive Marketing Association
* [\[S04\] Matter subscription pricing and reward funding](https://matterapp.com/pricing?utm%5Fsource=giftcard.news&utm%5Fcampaign=giftcard.news) — Matter
* [\[S05\] Tango company history and BHN acquisition](https://www.tangocard.com/company/about-us?utm%5Fsource=giftcard.news&utm%5Fcampaign=giftcard.news) — Tango
* [\[S06\] Reward funding methods and processing fees, observed October 19, 2026](https://help.matterapp.com/en/articles/6270398-how-are-rewards-billed?utm%5Fsource=giftcard.news&utm%5Fcampaign=giftcard.news) — Matter Help Center
* [\[S07\] Tango acquisition explanation, May 6, 2024](https://blackhawknetwork.com/resources/tango-is-now-a-division-of-blackhawk-network?utm%5Fsource=giftcard.news&utm%5Fcampaign=giftcard.news) — Blackhawk Network

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![Portrait of Suzie Elis](https://giftcard.news/images/variants/v1/suzie-elis-editorial-portrait-w320.webp) 

About the author

## [Suzie Elis](https://giftcard.news/author/suzie-elis/)

Journalist — Gift Cards & Digital Gifting

Suzie Elis covers gift card products, digital gifting and distribution for Gift Card News.

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## Your next move in gift cards.

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