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Credit Cards

5 Tips for Credit Card Management

Thu, 18/06/2009 - 17:09 by Jaspreet Virk

With their tremendous financial benefits, credit cards have revolutionized the American way of life. Their universal application has done away with the need to carry cash or sign check books for every single purchase. But their successful application calls for certain precautions.

Sell Visa. Now.

Thu, 11/06/2009 - 01:21 by Morgan Housel

Let me get one thing out in front: Visa (NYSE: V) is a phenomenal company. I mean really, really good. High-quality. Strong moat. Well-managed. Sturdy balance sheet. The works. It's the epitome of what you should look for in long-term investments.

Curious Numbers for Credit Cards

Fri, 22/05/2009 - 13:06 by Morgan Housel

The Federal Reserve released its monthly minutes yesterday, and for the first time in recent memory, some parts of the outlook were fairly chipper. "Financial market conditions," it states, have "generally strengthened, and surveys and anecdotal reports pointed to a pickup in household and business confidence."

New credit card rules announced in Canada

Fri, 22/05/2009 - 08:03 by harsheeb

Toronto -- Canada's Conservative finance minister Thursday announced new regulations for credit card issuers, but stopped short of interest rate caps.

At a news conference in Toronto, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said it was decided not to cap interest rates as consumers had a wide choice of options in selecting their credit cards, the Canwest News Service said.

Among the nine changes to credit laws was a provision that companies give consumers a 21-day interest-free grace period on new purchases, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. said.

"This is a major change that was resisted by financial institutions," Flaherty said. "It will cost them tens of millions of dollars a year."

U.S. House approves credit card bill

Thu, 21/05/2009 - 12:14 by harsheeb

Washington -- The U.S. House Wednesday overwhelmingly OK'd credit card reform legislation that would require plain contract language and notice of interest rate changes.

The 361-to-64 vote reflected public ire over how banks and credit card companies treat consumers, with lawmakers citing sudden, unexplained interest rate increases and seemingly incomprehensible terms as major complaints, The New York Times reported.

The bill now goes to President Barack Obama, who had requested the bill be on his desk so he could sign it by Memorial Day.

How to Destroy the Credit Card Industry

Wed, 20/05/2009 - 12:43 by Morgan Housel

Remember 2007? We called this the "subprime mortgage crisis," assuming the risks were contained to one relatively small section of the economy.

Do MasterCard and Visa Bring Higher Prices for All?

Thu, 14/05/2009 - 22:29 by Selena Maranjian

We're used to thinking of American corporations fighting one another, competing for market share and consumer dollars. But every now and then, often unbeknownst to us, they band together.

Containing Credit Card Crisis

Fri, 08/05/2009 - 11:13 by Daisy Sarma

One of the major financial concerns for families across the country, even before the onset of the current economic crisis, has been an ever-increasing credit card debt pile.

 

Visa Has a Case of the Slows

Fri, 01/05/2009 - 10:37 by Morgan Housel

I love Visa (NYSE: V). It's hard to come up with an example of a company with a more impenetrable moat. The enormous barriers to entry and near duopoly it shares with MasterCard (NYSE: MA) are a thing of beauty.

Treading Water at American Express

Sat, 25/04/2009 - 12:06 by Morgan Housel

Better than expected, still pretty bad. That seems to be the case for most banks these days, and it was no exception for American Express (NYSE: AXP).

More Reasons to Worry About Credit Card Companies

Tue, 14/04/2009 - 07:59 by Morgan Housel

Last month, I showed how massive cuts in idle consumer credit lines could equal hell for credit card processors like Visa (NYSE: V) and MasterCard (NYSE: MA).

Get Ready for Credit Card Hell

Thu, 19/03/2009 - 13:21 by Morgan Housel