1.1. General introduction about bankcard

1.1.1 History of bankcard

Bankcard history began when individual retail merchants extended credit to their customers, allowing them to charge purchases to an account held by the merchant.

In 1730, Christopher Thompson, a furniture merchant, created the first advertisement for credit by offering furniture that could be paid off weekly. However, 1950 marked the real beginning of the credit card most of us are familiar with today. Diner’s Club, Inc. introduced the first credit card that could be used at a variety of stores and businesses. Advantages of this card immediately took notice of many people.

In 1960, Bank of American introduced its own bankcard, the BankAmericard. In 1966, fourteen United States banks formed Interbank, a new association with the ability to exchange information on credit card transactions. The following year, 1967, four California banks changed their named from the California Bankcard Association to the Western States Bankcard Association (WSBA). The new WSBA licensed Interbank to use the MasterCharge name and logo. In the late 1960s, numerous financial institutions became MasterCharge (Interbank) members to compete with BankAmericard. Eventually, financial institutions interested in issuing cards in the U.S. became members of either BankAmericard or MasterCharge. In 1977, BankAmericard became Visa USA/ Visa International. In 1979, MasterCharge changed its name to MasterCard to reflect its expanded services. At the present time, the leaders in the bankcard systems are Visa, Master Card, Amex and JCB.

Payment by bankcard quickly become popularity in other countries. In 1960, the first plastic card was used in Japan marked the beginning of bankcard in Asia. The first plastic card of Barcaly Bank issued in 1966 also highlighted a new period of development of bankcard in Europe.