FUN FACT FRIDAY

When was the first credit card issued?

Although there had been a few trials of “credit cards” for loyal customers of retail shops of account holders doing business with local business, the first big name credit card was the Diner’s Club.

A guy named Frank forgot his wallet when out to a business dinner in New York and had to scrounge to pay the bill. He thought it would be a good idea to create an alternative payment plan that could be used all over the country for travelling business men. And so the Diner’s Club Card was invented to pay for dining and entertainment of business customers.

By 1951, there were 20,000 Diner’s Club Cards in use. A cardboard card carried by travelers and used in thousands of establishments nationwide. The bill needed to be paid in full each month. Soon after that American Express Centurion Bank issued their own card (plastic) and surpassed the number of users to millions in the first five years.   Credit cards became main stream in the 1970’s when the magnetic strip became standard and businesses began to accept it as a form of payment.

So, we can go back in time and blame Frank McNamara for our debt troubles today!