Initial Statement of Beneficial Ownership (3)

FORM 3	UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 INITIAL STATEMENT OF BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP OF SECURITIES	OMB APPROVAL OMB Number: 3235-0104 Estimated average burden hours per response... 0.5
	Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 or Section 30(h) of the Investment Company Act of 1940

1. Name and Address of Reporting Person ^*

Arbabha Jay

2. Date of Event Requiring Statement (MM/DD/YYYY) 1/1/2017

3. Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol

CPI Card Group Inc. [PMTS]

(Last) (First) (Middle)

C/O CPI CARD GROUP INC., 10026 W. SAN JUAN WAY, SUITE 200

4. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer (Check all applicable)

_____ Director _____ 10% Owner
___ X ___ Officer (give title below) _____ Other (specify below)
Chief Technology Officer /

(Street)

LITTLETON, CO 80127

(City) (State) (Zip)

5. If Amendment, Date Original Filed (MM/DD/YYYY)

6. Individual or Joint/Group Filing (Check Applicable Line)

_ X _ Form filed by One Reporting Person
___ Form filed by More than One Reporting Person

Table I - Non-Derivative Securities Beneficially Owned
1.Title of Security (Instr. 4)	2. Amount of Securities Beneficially Owned (Instr. 4)	3. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 5)	4. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 5)
Common Stock	2500	D

*Table II - Derivative Securities Beneficially Owned ( e.g.* , puts, calls, warrants, options, convertible securities)**
1. Title of Derivate Security (Instr. 4)	2. Date Exercisable and Expiration Date (MM/DD/YYYY)		3. Title and Amount of Securities Underlying Derivative Security (Instr. 4)		4. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security	5. Ownership Form of Derivative Security: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 5)	6. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 5)
1. Title of Derivate Security (Instr. 4)	Date Exercisable	Expiration Date	Title	Amount or Number of Shares	4. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security		6. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 5)
Stock Option (Right to Buy)	11/1/2018 ⁽¹⁾	11/1/2026 ⁽¹⁾	Common Stock	19868	$5.75	D
Restricted Stock Units	⁽²⁾ ⁽³⁾	⁽²⁾ ⁽³⁾	Common Stock	3439	⁽³⁾	D

Explanation of Responses:
( 1)	Date at which first vesting occurs is indicated. One-third (1/3) of the original options awarded will vest on each of the second, third, and fourth anniversaries of the November 1, 2016 award date.
( 2)	The restricted stock units vest in three equal installments on the second, third and fourth anniversaries of the November 1, 2016 award date.
( 3)	Each restricted stock unit represents the right to receive one CPI Card Group Inc. common share upon vesting of such restricted stock unit.

Reporting Owners
Reporting Owner Name / Address	Relationships
Reporting Owner Name / Address	Director	10% Owner	Officer	Other
Arbabha Jay C/O CPI CARD GROUP INC. 10026 W. SAN JUAN WAY, SUITE 200 LITTLETON, CO 80127			Chief Technology Officer

Signatures
/s/ Lisa Jacoba, by Power of Attorney		1/5/2017
^** Signature of Reporting Person		Date

Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially owned directly or indirectly.
*	If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, see Instruction 5(b)(v).
**	Intentional misstatements or omissions of facts constitute Federal Criminal Violations. See 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a).
Note:	File three copies of this Form, one of which must be manually signed. If space is insufficient, see Instruction 6 for procedure.
Persons who respond to the collection of information contained in this form are not required to respond unless the form displays a currently valid OMB control number.