As fun as it is to receive them, plenty of people forget they still have them – or wait until it’s too late to use them.
With the bankrupt Borders bookstore chain beginning its liquidation process last week, gift-card hoarders all over the city suddenly started digging into the bottoms of pocketbooks and wallets, worried over whether their Borders cards were still worth anything.
Relax. Borders said it’s presently honoring gift cards, but shoppers need to use them before it’s too late.
There is a huge showdown going on between banks, merchants, regulators and legislators over interchange fees on credit cards and debit cards. Interchange fees are charged to merchants every time a customer uses a card, and the controversy over the fees is leading businesses to rebel against the way things have been done for years.
Some people may have noticed that coffee shops, gas stations and other businesses have begun imposing a minimum purchase amount a person has to make in order to use a debit card or credit card, and there’s a reason for it. It’s called an interchange fee, and the bank that a person has their credit or debit card through charges a fee to pay the customer’s charge, and it costs, on average, 44 cents according to CNN. Banks
Now-a-days, consumers receive bad loans through credit cards. This has got an incredible issue in most of the developed countries. Therefore, banks are thinking of some credit cards that are richer or strongly credit worthy. The phenomenon for highly exclusive credit cards is growing rapidly, which may include all the products customers can access. For instance, private jets and personal shopping services on which thousands of dollars can be spent using their plastic.
There are many types of the credit cards relating to the status, values and style of the customers. However, there are six most exclusive of them which have really impressed people worldwide.
Many lenders up rewards and discounts for holiday shopping on credit cards
In an attempt to convince more consumers to make their holiday purchases with their credit cards this winter, many companies have boosted the amount of cash back rewards cardholders can earn by making certain purchases, according to a report from Bankrate. Most major lenders are offering 5 percent cash back on everything bought at clothing and department stores, while others will grant the same rate for electronics retailers, supermarkets, movie theaters and restaurants.
In addition, others have introduced greater cash back rewards for shopping at certain online retailers, the report said. Read more…
Credit companies often put up a very lucrative offer of having best credit cards without any initial fees. These offers however are valid up to only six months. Though there is no fees charged, there will be fixed low interest rates on those credit cards, if you want to have your balance transferred during that particular offer period. The problem is however there are many companies out there are offering a wide variety of credit card best offers, but which one is really the best? To know this you just have to keep some tools handy.
Consumer Reports
Consumer reports is the official database where thousands of credit cards are rated annually.
During the recession, and even after, many lenders may have become more resistant to offering consumers loans, whether they were in the form of mortgages or credit cards.
Given some of the credit difficulties the country faced – rising credit card default and home loan foreclosure rates, for example – lenders tried to reduce their risks by being more careful to whom they gave money. Although this may still be the case, a recent report shows that financial organizations are warming up to the idea of extending credit and financial products.
According to Mintel Comperemedia, the number of direct mail offers made during the first quarter of this year hit 6.1 billion, a 16 percent increase compared to the 5.3 billion seen in the last quarter of 2009. Read more…
There are currently 19 U.S. states that use Eppicard to process and distribute state payments. Recently, Eppicard users have been the target of phishing scams. Are Eppicards an effective way for states to distribute benefits?
How Eppicard is used
The Eppicard system is a third-party “servicing” company that provides financial services for states. In 19 states, Eppicards are used to provide child support, unemployment and state benefit payments. In general, an Eppicard works very much like a debit card – the payment is deposited into an Eppicard account, and then the money is debited electronically when the card is used at an ATM or store.
Eppicards targeted by phishing
In Ohio, many Eppicard users are being targeted by e-mail and text message phishing scams. Eppic
