On today's date in Madman history, Bank of America changed the name of it's credit card to VISA. It also underwent a major business structure change.
The BankAmericard debuted in 1958. But because each branch of Bank of America was responsible for not only issuing their own cards they also had to collect fees and repayments on their own. Ideally, the plan was supposed to be smooth and easy. But as people got more mobile and traveled both nationwide and globally, the collection process became a nightmare.
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| 1977 magazine ad explaining the name change to Visa. |
Another issue Bank of America didn't foresee was credit card fraud. Con men such as Frank Abagnale Jr. stole millions for BoA and dozens of other banks running scams involving credit cards. So in 1976, IBANCO, the International Bankcard Company, voted to restructure the BankAmericard into two entities: Visa USA and Visa International. Eventually, they would merge into just 1 Visa card.
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| A 1958 BankAmericard. |
The Blue and Gold Card, over the next 40 years, grew to become one of the top 2 most recognized credit cards used worldwide; Mastercard being the other. I've got one or two myself. Though to be honest, one is actually a debit card tied into the Visa company as a financial backer. Thus, if I ever overdraft my account, Visa will post bonds for my expenses- for a hefty fee of course!
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| What the heck did Elvis need with a credit card? |
Well, that's my look at 1977 for today. Until tomorrow- don't spend more than you can afford!
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