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Have you ever thought that bank cards in world financial history are a relatively new thing. If people have been using metal money for several millennia, the history of plastic bank cards lasts only a few decades.
At the beginning of the last century in America, many large stores and restaurants came up with different options for selling their goods and services on credit. Someone took receipts from the client, someone tried to call the bank right away, but all this was not very convenient either for the seller or for the buyer. The buyer wanted to buy the goods quickly, while the seller wanted to be completely sure that he would receive his money from the client’s bank account. In those days there was no Internet, and it was very difficult to find out from the bank quickly whether a customer could buy this product. Payment card systems were able to solve the problem, and they took on the role of an intermediary in conducting settlements between customers and retail outlets.
The first massive card payment system called Diners Club appeared in America in 1949. At first, the company distributed its plastic cards to restaurant visitors, but later they began to be distributed through banks. The cards were personalized, the name of the client was indicated on them. Diners Club cards were credit cards, that is, people made purchases on credit with this card, which then had to be repaid along with interest on the loan (you can read about how loans are arranged and why they are never free for borrowers here). The card itself was not free for customers - the cost of its annual service was then $ 3.
The technology turned out to be so successful that two years later, Diners Club cards appeared even on another continent - in the UK, and subsequently - around the world.
Following the Diners Club, other well-known payment systems appeared, such as: Visa, MasterCard and American Express. Moreover, American Express, like Diners Club, is originally a credit card. But MasterCard and Visa are both credit and debit.
A debit card is a card linked to a client’s bank account. How much money a client has on his account, so much he can spend. Your parents probably have such a card on which their salary is charged. Such cards are usually called salary cards. As a rule, they are free for the client. The only thing you have to pay extra is an SMS notification about card transactions, thanks to which you always know how much you spent and how much more money is left on your card. In addition, if someone suddenly steals a card and pays it in the store, you can immediately call the bank and report fraudsters.
Which card to take abroad
If you have a trip abroad, you must correctly choose a plastic card. As you know, each country has its own national currency. In Russia - rubles, in America - US dollars, in Europe - euros. Of course, you can pay with your ruble card all over the world, but you will have to pay a fee to the payment system and your bank (usually 1-3% of the purchase amount, and sometimes even higher). Therefore, when traveling to Europe, it is better to take a card with a denomination in euros, and when traveling to America - in dollars.
If you are planning a trip to China, it is better to bring a China UnionPay card with you. The settlement currency of these cards is Chinese yuan. Therefore, paying them in China is more profitable than using any other cards.
In Russia - Peace!
Recently, Russia also has its own national card payment system. Many of our banks began to issue cards called "World". This card is convenient to pay in stores and on the Internet, as well as deposit and withdraw money. Russia is a huge country where more than 140 million people live, so it is possible that over time the Mir cards will be one of the most popular in the world.
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