Business credit cards have become indispensable to the corporate world today. These credit cards eliminate the risks attached with carrying cash and make purchasing easier at crucial times. Business credit cards prove to be a boon to the business management teams in most establishments.

These business credit cards enable both, the employee as well as the management to maintain a record of their individual personal and business related expenses. The main objective of investing in a business credit card is to be able to take care of any business related expenditure in the absence or lack of insufficient funds. This is more important when the purchase of business supplies at a particular time affect the set business target.

Most credit card companies make attractive offers to their customers to entice them into making investments with the financial institution. In addition to this, most of the companies, apart from relinquishing the annual fee for the first year, also award the corporate enterprises with points to avail valuable discounts on business- related purchases.

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Life can be pretty difficult if you happen to be in the unfortunate position of having less than perfect credit.The fact that credit is almost impossible to get even if you really need it is bad enough, but, life in the USA today without a credit card is nigh on impossible. Booking a hotel room, hiring a car, buying products online, hiring equipment and many other straightforward activities require a valid credit card with no “if’s or but’s”.

Many people have been in this position but have managed regain decent credit scores through the use of prepaid credit cards. The great thing about prepaid cards is that there are generally no checks or qualifications required – no credit score, no employer contact and no guarantors required. In a nutshell anyone can get a prepaid card, they simply have to deposit funds to provide the credit limit required. Essentially it is a debit card as no credit is offered. However it can be used in any outlet or retailer, on or offline, that accepts conventional credit cards.

It is a little known fact there are prepaid card companies who report on the conduct of your card to credit bureau’s and therefore can have a positive impact on your credit score over a period of time. If you want to improve your credit profile it is important to make sure the card issuer will report to a credit bureau. If this is not the case then the prepaid card will have no effect on your credit score whatsoever.

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American Express credit cards, more popularly known as AMEX, are among the most used credit cards worldwide. Even those who already have another card such as a MasterCard or Visa often still want to obtain an American Express credit card. AMEX, along with MasterCard and Visa comprise the most popular credit cards. However, there are substantial differences between these cards.

Visa and MasterCard are both payment providers. They have a system which they allow business to use in order to accept payments using these cards. Visa and MasterCard are issued by banks rather than by the companies themselves. The banks also receive the interest payments; in fact all of the processing is doe by the banks rather than by the credit card companies.

This is the biggest difference between these cards. The American Express credit card is issued directly to cardholders by AMEX itself. Amex is also the company which deals with payments and processing, unlike MasterCard or Visa. An AMEX card is always issued by AMEX; there is no doubt as to the legitimacy of the issuer with these cards.

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Credit cards with reward programs allow cards holders to earn incentives for the purchases the make using the company’s credit card. For every purchase made or a dollar spent, the cardholder earns some points and the points, thus accumulated, can be redeemed by the customer. Most companies offer good cash rewards as they value a customer’s loyalty and regular paying ability. A prerequisite for most of these programs is for the customer to have a good credit standing. Even the customer feels he is getting something in return and appreciates this, making him a more loyal client.

Through cash back credit cards, cardholders can earn cash rewards for the purchases they make. Usually, on most cards, customers can earn 1 % of the total purchased amount. Some card companies offer even higher percentage but only for the first few months. Most of the time, the program starts at 1% and climbs up to 5 % only if you have made purchases of five to ten thousand dollars. There are few cards which offer higher cash rebates only at specific merchant outlets or for select purchases. Few companies offer 5% cash back on the select purchases with no annual fee, on the card, charged.

Generally speaking, cash back credit cards are always better than gas rebate or frequent flyer points as the cardholder can use the money at his/her convenience. Nevertheless, one should not be lured by these rebates and must read the offer carefully since these cash back credit cards are costly to the companies so they normally have an annual fee. Suppose, a company is offering you an attractive rebate but charging you a high Annual Percentage Rate (APR), then it’s not such a good deal as it can cancel out the benefit it offers. This is exactly why, while choosing a cash back credit card, the card holder must consider some points which are unique to every program. The percentage cash back he would be getting should be clear. The cardholder should know the maximum possible limit of the points earned and lastly, time duration within which these points have to be redeemed before they expire. Many cards have complicated redemption policies like points can be redeemable only within few days which a card holder may not be aware of and he may miss out on the benefit. The card holder should always read the fine print carefully to avail the full benefits.

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The idea of contactless credit cards has been in the pipeline for some time now, but on Tuesday 8 May, the UK banking industry finally confirmed plans for the introduction of contactless technology on UK credit and debit cards. From September 2007, contactless credit and debit cards will be introduced by many financial providers. Through contactless technology, customers will be able to make transactions of £10 or under by simply holding up their upgraded card to a secure reader to make their payment in any participating retail outlet.

The initial launch of this contactless card technology will be rolled out in London in September of this year in an initiative led by both MasterCard and Visa Europe, and will be followed by a nation-wide upgrade in 2008. Cardholders will not need to take any action themselves – instead, depending on your card issuer, debit and credit card holders will have the option of adding contactless technology to their existing credit or debit card, or alternatively they’ll be offered a new contactless card.

Among the organisations that plan to take part in the first phase of the contactless card rollout are Bank of Scotland, Barclaycard, Halifax, the Royal Bank of Scotland group, Lloyds TSB, HSBC, Euroconex Technologies Ltd and Citi. Industry experts estimate that by the end of 2008, over five million contactless debit or credit cards will have been issued, and these will be accepted by a minimum of 100,000 merchants.

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The credit card company will not necessarily wish to sign up every merchant. At one extreme there may be a history of malpractice and at the other he may be operating immorally or in some business with which the company does not wish to be associated with.

In between the merchant may be untrustworthy in the sense of being unreliable and this may lead to claims against the company. Simply put that the merchant may not be creditworthy.

The card company’s procedures therefore have to be adequate enough to check up on all the above factors and before accepting a merchant. The company may well make some basic credit checks, a bank reference and perhaps a recent balance sheet in order to verify the merchant’s creditworthiness.

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There are of course certain risks involved in having a credit card, and it is definitely not for people who are spendthrifts or who have difficulty saving money. However, if the person is careful and cautious with finances, and can be responsible enough to manage his funds, then owning a credit card, such as a Providian card may prove to be beneficial and advantageous.

People who have Providian credit cards are definitely at a clear advantage over those who do not have any credit card. There are a lot of things that Providian extends to its customers and cardholders, including considerable discounts at restaurants and food outlets, but most especially a direct access to the all important FICO credit ratings.

Aside from affording its cardholders with discounts on the food they eat at restaurants and food outlets, the Providian card also give reward miles to frequent airplane riders and even outright discounts from air fares. This directly translates to better flying mileage for cardholders and this is a great way to maximize the use of these card.

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Do you have a small business? How much do you earn? Is your credit card helping you? How much do you pay for your credit card?

Running a small business is a very difficult job, especially if you are alone with this endeavor. It will take a lot of consideration and study. Small business must work hard to prevent bankruptcy. The owner should have the full knowledge on how to prevent it from happening.

Business is in fact a fragile cycle. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. Business at all times should have a profit for it to survive and be worthwhile.

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Everyone needs credit these days and credit cards have become a part and parcel of everyone’s life. But man has woven a credit card debt trap around itself. To avoid this debt trap low rate credit cards have been introduced. A low rate credit card is usually for those who hold a good credit history and have considerable repayment capacity. For example the student credit card is generally not a low rate credit card. The travel cards issued by some of the reputed merchants like British Airways, NorthWest Airlines etc are cards that attract high interest charges.

If someone carries a large balance on a high interest credit card then transferring the balance to a low rate credit card can save some honest money. Low rate credit card ensures paying off large outstanding on numerous cards at an attractive low interest rates. Some cards offer 0% APR on balance transfer and cash advances from six months to twelve months.

The rates involved in calculating the finance charges are usually the interest rates. Other charges include the late payment fee, over limit fee, rates applicable after the introductory period, etc. For those who carry a large balance on their cards opting for a low rate credit card can save thousands of dollars. A low rate credit card also offers several other benefits like 5% cash back reward on select purchases from outlets like grocery stores, supermarkets or gas stations and 1% cash back reward on purchases from other outlets.

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A credit card can be very handy in your day to day financial transactions. Say, if you need to buy an ink cartridge for your printer and at that moment of time you don’t have ready/enough cash to make that necessary purchase, then the old faithful credit card will come to your rescue. And what’s more – you can pay off your loan to the credit card provider over a certain period of time. You can make other necessary purchases like this by just banking on your trusted friend, the credit card.

Credit cards enable you to purchase goods and services in most retail outlets (and this includes the internet as well) without you needing to spend/find cash (subject to your credit limit).

Then, you also have the security of paying through the Chip and PIN method. Signing receipts of your purchases is now becoming a thing of the past and the Chip and PIN is universally in use in most retail outlets in the UK. All you have to do is to key in a four digit number into a keypad before you make your purchase. The four digit numbers selected by you should not be revealed to anyone and preferably, memorised. Never make the mistake of writing it down and keeping it together with your credit card, in your wallet or purse. This way even if your wallet or purse is lost or stolen, you can be rest assured your credit card will not be tampered with because no one will have any access to your PIN. But in the case of an unforeseen event of it being lost or stolen and it transpires that you were neglectful of concealing your PIN, the credit card issuer will not reimburse you for your losses in spite of the fact that you may have reported the disappearance or theft within the required time of 24 hours.
Another plus factor with regards to the use of credit cards is afforded by the Consumer Credit Act 1974. According to this Act, if you are dissatisfied with goods and services you have recently purchased, you are at liberty to ask for your money back. In a situation like this, the credit card lender will refund you your money and seek redress at the retail outlet. Again, if you happen to pay in advance for an order of good/s and service/s from a company that has failed to keep up to its promises, then the credit card lender will be obliged to reimburse you for your losses.

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