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Companies and Brands

Visa Inc.

Financials

Visa Inc. is an American multinational payments company headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, tracing to BankAmericard, a credit card program launched by Bank of America in 1958 that was spun off into a bank-owned consortium named Visa in 1976 and became an independent public company through an initial public offering in 2008. It operates one of the world's largest electronic payment networks, processing card transactions between banks and merchants without itself issuing cards or extending credit to consumers.

Facts
Company Type
Payment card services corporation 1
Founded Year
1958 1
Founded September 18, 1958 as BankAmericard in Fresno, California; renamed Visa in 1976.
Headquarters
San Francisco, California, U.S. 1
Connections

Associated With

Finance, Practice Disciplines
Virtual Organization, Business Models

Related Corporate Events

Visa Initial Public Offering, Corporate Events
In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. Wikipedia, Visa Inc.
Wikipedia
  • lead paragraph
    Visa Inc. is an American multinational payment card services corporation headquartered in San Francisco, California. It facilitates electronic funds transfers worldwide, most commonly through Visa-branded credit cards, debit cards and prepaid cards.
  • infobox, Founded
    Visa Inc. is an American multinational payment card services corporation headquartered in San Francisco, California. It facilitates electronic funds transfers worldwide, most commonly through Visa-branded credit cards, debit cards and prepaid cards.
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Frequently Asked Questions

Does Visa issue credit cards or lend money to consumers?

Visa runs the payment network; banks issue the cards and extend the credit.

No. Visa operates a payment network that carries card transactions between banks and merchants. It does not issue cards, extend credit or set rates and fees for consumers; the banks and other financial institutions that put the Visa brand on their cards do that. The company traces to BankAmericard, a credit card program launched by Bank of America in 1958, which became the bank-owned Visa in 1976 and an independent public company through its 2008 initial public offering.
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