When you think of credit cards, it’s
likely that the word, “MasterCard” immediately
comes to your mind. And it’s no wonder—this
credit card company is growing by leaps and bounds—issuing
millions of credit cards to anxious borrowers all
around the globe.
It’s no secret that consumer’s reliance
on credit cards is rapidly increasing, but if you
haven’t taken a close look at some of the figures,
you may not realize just how reliant Americans have
become on those little cards in their wallets. In
fact, we are the first generation to spend more than
we earn on a consistent basis!
Here are some facts that just may startle
you:
- MasterCard users used their cards for 4.8 billion
transactions globally in the second quarter of this
year.
- The above referenced transactions resulted in gross
sales of $408.4 billion.
- Gross sales increased 12.3 percent over the same
second quarter period in the year 2004.
- The number of transactions was increased too—up
14.5 percent from last year.
- The number of MasterCard cards issued this year
increased by 12.1 percent, that’s—are
you ready for this? 716.3 million cards worldwide.
So, who is this corporate giant, and where did they
get their start? According to their web site (http://www.mastercard.com/us/gateway.html
), MasterCard had their modest beginning in the 1940’s
when a few banks began to issue special papers to
select customers that could be spent as cash in certain
stores. Eleven years later, the Franklin National
Bank in New York made a move that would change America
forever—they issued the first official credit
card. Then on August 16, 1966, the Interbank Card
Association (ICA) was formed. This organization worked
with several local banks and issued credit cards that
could be used in certain stores. ICA later became
MasterCard as they committed to global expansion.
Then, in 1968, MasterCard began that global expansion.
Starting with Mexico, then moving into Europe, Japan,
and then in 1988 finally into China and the Soviet
Union, MasterCard had successfully spread across the
globe.
Today, the credit card issuer claims 37 worldwide
offices and can be found in 210 countries and territories.
In addition, there are over 25,000 financial institutions
around the globe that are responsible for issuing
the more than 716.3 credit cards annually.
8/4/05
|
