Runa is making the case for letting reward recipients select the merchant they want to use. In an August 7, 2025 commentary, the company says a card tied to an unwanted brand can leave value unused and miss an opportunity for the retailer to gain a customer.

Its Payout Links offering supports either sending a particular gift card or sending a balance from which the recipient chooses merchants. In the latter flow, the recipient opens an emailed link, makes a selection and redeems the value.

Runa reports that 98.3% of its recipients spent their gift card within 30 days of being sent a Payout Link. The article gives that as a company figure but does not supply a measurement period, sample size or comparison group.

The commentary also cites preference figures: 67% favored multi-merchant gift cards, and 72% wanted more control over reward redemption. Runa uses those findings to support offering relevant choices, while separately citing consumers’ willingness to spend with brands to which they are loyal.

For merchants, the company argues that a selected brand can benefit from a stronger intention to redeem and additional spending above the card value. These are the reasons behind its distribution strategy; the article does not identify all of the cited preference statistics as original Runa research.