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The power and peril of credit cards
On Aug. 19, 1968, Canadian banks launched the first all-purpose credit card. They called it Chargex, a name that was dropped in 1979 in favour of Visa.
They launched a memorable advertising campaign – "Will that be cash or Chargex?" – which led to the adoption of 6.3 million cards in Canada by the late 1970s.
The were four founding members of Chargex: Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto-Dominion Bank, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and Banque Canadienne Nationale; Scotiabank joined in 1973, says Tania Freedman, a Visa spokesperson.
Bank of Montreal was the only major bank to try something different. It introduced Mastercharge (now MasterCard) in 1973.
Credit cards have expanded beyond the wildest dreams of issuers.
http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/479980
On Aug. 19, 1968, Canadian banks launched the first all-purpose credit card. They called it Chargex, a name that was dropped in 1979 in favour of Visa.
They launched a memorable advertising campaign – "Will that be cash or Chargex?" – which led to the adoption of 6.3 million cards in Canada by the late 1970s.
The were four founding members of Chargex: Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto-Dominion Bank, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and Banque Canadienne Nationale; Scotiabank joined in 1973, says Tania Freedman, a Visa spokesperson.
Bank of Montreal was the only major bank to try something different. It introduced Mastercharge (now MasterCard) in 1973.
Credit cards have expanded beyond the wildest dreams of issuers.
http://www.thestar.com/Business/article/479980