The Makings of a Credit Card

The Makings of a Credit Card. When you choose to take a look at your wallet, you might find several credit cards staring back at you. While the colors and the designs on the card might vary, all credits have consistent information on them. So, let us take a look at what is found on a Credit Card.

The Makings of a Credit Card

The Making of a Credit Card

Front of a Credit Card

Credit card design and trends continue to change, but most cards happen to share several features, which include the issuer’s name, the network, the cardholder’s name, and the card number.

Credit Card Issuer

This is the bank that got the credit card issued. You get to apply to this bank in other to get the card, and it determines the details of the card like the reward points and the card benefits. In this situation, the Bank of America just relies on the name of the card to indicate the issuing bank.

Credit Card Name

This is the particular name of the credit card. Card names usually start with the name of the bank issuing it, followed by the name they gave to the card, but in the above case “Bank of America” and “Credit card” are stylized right into “BankAmericard,” the word they use to begin most of their card names, followed by the name of this particular card: “Cash Rewards.”

Credit Card Network

The credit card network and the level of service associated with the card depend on this part. If the card you are making use of is of Visa Signature status, it would say so right in front of the card. The Credit card network is responsible for processing your payments with the card, and today, there are four of them. They include:

  • Visa
  • Mastercard
  • American Express
  • Discover

Cardholder Name

The name of the owner of the card.

Credit Card Number

Here is the identifying number associated with this particular card. It is stored right on a magnetic strip. When you choose to swipe your card at a terminal or a reader, the number will get you the information concerning the credit card network and the issuer.

Credit card number happens to be assigned by the American National Standards Institute and the ISO or the International Organization for Standardization. Your account is made up of sixteen digits and is allocated by the issuer of the card. Some cards come with only seven digits.

Date of Account Opening

The year that the credit card was opened. Not all cards would have the information on display.

Expiration date

The date at which this particular card would expire. This doesn’t mean that the credit card would be closed; instead, this usually only means that it’s time for you to go for a new card. The new card would get mailed to you by the issuer and would have a new expiration date and CVV code, and sometimes a new account number.

In some situations, the credit card issuers would make use of this time to analyze the credit of the cardholder and then potentially make the decision about the card terms such as lowering the limit of your credit, increasing the interest rate, suspending the account, or even closing the account.

Back of a Credit Card

Magnetic Stripe

This is also called the magstripe, this black bar holds all of your account information. It is made up of millions of tiny magnetic particles. When you swipe your card right through a card reader terminal, the reader will get your account details right from the magstripe and make use of it to process the transaction.

CVV Security Code

This code is a tool to prevent fraud, it is used when making card-not-present transactions, like online purchases that do not require you to actually have a physical credit card. All you just need is the details printed on it.

These are the opposite of those transactions where you would actually make use of the plastic card, such as when checking out at a grocery store, where you would make use of the magstripe or the chip.

CVV codes are a 3-digit number for VISA, Mastercard, and Discover cards, and a 4-digit code for Amex.

Customer Service Phone Line

The Phone number found on the back of your card is the best number to make use of for general customer service.

Signature box

This is another great fraud-prevention tool, but this one barely serves its purpose. The cardholder is expected to sign their card here for the card to be legally valid, with the intention that this signature can get matched with that of a driver’s license or a signature given at the register when a transaction is made.

Hologram Security Feature

This Hologram is a security feature that is meant to stop the card from getting copied physically. It contains several layers of images at different angles, giving it the illusion of some motion. Also, there might be other images hidden within these layers.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Credit Card?

A credit card is basically a physical payment card that allows consumers to borrow money in other to make purchases that must then be repaid. Credit cards would generate money for card issuers by charging customers interest fees right on their card balances.

What is a Credit Card Number?

It is a string of numeric digits that identifies the credit card. It is usually displayed on the front of the card, and it generally features about 15 or 16 digits.

Where’s Your Security Code/CVV?

Your security code is also recognized as your card verification value (CVV) it is most visible on your physical credit card.

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