As Mike Cane
points out, the WSJ is reporting that Borders is delaying payments to some publishers. If Borders files for bankruptcy, gift cards are essentially worthless. So if you got a pile of Border's gift cards for Christmas, be aware of the risk involved with holding on to them.
This is true of any gift cards in the US, but Borders is reportedly in very poor financial shape and so their cards are more likely than most to become worthless.