Credit Cards Terms Summary

By: Devin Gilliland

Bad Credit Rating - This is a term associated with a person or a company that have failed to honour fiscal obligations in the past. It is most likely they have either completed payments late, have been bankrupt of perhaps exceeded their pre-agreed card limit.

Bank Identification Number - This is a number which identifies the financial institution or credit card provider. This can often be the first 6 digits on an account number.

Bank Card - The payment card provided by a bank.

Billing Cycle - This is the period between payments will accrue. This is often one month however this is through convention rather than law or any other external factor.

BIN - See Bank Identification Number for summary

Business Credit Card - This is a where the entity liable for payments is a business rather than a person.

Card - This refers to the plastic card issued to a customer of a credit card company, when the term is used in the context of credit cards.

Card Issuer - A card issuer is a credit card company or institution that provides credit cards to credit card holders.

Card Reader - A card reader is a machine that is able to read information stored with the magnetic strip of a credit card.

Card Holder - A person or entity that owns a credit card or that has had a credit card issued to it/them.

Card Not Present - This refers to a transaction where the card holder is not present.

Cash Advance - A loan from a credit card provider that is given in cash, via an automatic teller machine or a bank withdrawal

Cash Back - Cash back is money that is returned to the credit card holder on a monthly, quarterly or yearly basis. Should you complete all your purchases with a credit card, and repay the amount in full at the end of each month, then this will result in a total surplus from your credit card spending. This money usually reflects a percentage of your total credit card spending.

Chargeback - A chargeback may occur when a dispute is brought up by the card holder or when it does not comply with legislation that the merchant has agreed to follow. This is money that is returned to the purchaser.

Chargeback Period - This refers to the time in which a charge back can incur. This will generally be a period of time, in days, after the transaction took place.

Co-Branded Card - This is a card in which the service provider/retailer and a bank/financial institution are stakeholders in. This will usually result in special allowances and restrictions in terms of where money can be spent and given, and will potentially result in specific awards from using the services/buying the products of the company.

Commercial Cards - The name given to a that is used exclusively for business purposes in which a company may be liable for payment and complying with the contract. This is the preference of organization who wish to keep their employees personal and business expenditure distinct for accounting and compensation purposes.

CNP - See Card Not Present for summary

Credit Cards
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