Student Credit Card Blog

It was less than 60 years ago in 1951 where the first version of a credit card appeared when inventor Frank McNamara created the Diner’s Club Card. This paper wallet sized card was intended for consumers to pay off their restaurant bills on a monthly basis which therefore made it a charge card. Then about 50 years ago in 1958 Bank Of America released the first bank issued paper credit card called the BankAmericard. They distributed about 60,000 unsolicited cards in Fresno, California. The card was the first of its kind that gave the consumer the choice of when they wanted to pay back the charges on the credit card.

In 1959 American Express decided to jump in the mix and differentiate themselves from the pack by issuing the first ever plastic credit card, which was the American Express Card which is still widely popular today. They touted that plastic cards were more durable and could hold up better to frequent usage. Then in 1968 they diversified their offering and came out with the American Express Executive Card which catered to the more affluent heavy spenders. This Gold card became a status symbol and anyone who was anyone during the time was sure to have one. Soon after more competition jumped into the market with the premier of the Master Charge Card which we know now as MasterCard. The name was changed in 1979 but their classic logo has remained virtually unchanged.

Credit Cards continued to gain popularity which is why another competitor came in 1984 which was the Chase Visa Card. One of the key reasons that companies wanted to get into the space was that consumers were carrying larger and larger amounts of debt. New comer Discover card came out in 1986 and the co-branded card started to appear in 1989 with the Visa/NFL card. Then in 1997 the first student credit card came out which was the University of Delaware MasterCard. Credit cards continue to change forms with customizable cards and variations like titanium, platinum and diamond. Now we will just have to wait and see what the next big change in credit cards will be.

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