Consumer Spending on Visa Signature Surpasses $100 Billion For Past 12 Months; Substantial Gains in Average Ticket Size and Transactions Highlight Value of Visa Signature's ''Rewards-Plus'' Offerings for New Affluent Segment

Business Wire, May 10, 2005

SAN FRANCISCO -- Visa USA today announced that, for the first time, consumer spending on Visa Signature cards in the United States surpassed $100 billion over a 12 month period. E[acute accent]From April 1, 2004 through March 31, 2005, consumers made $101.6 billion in purchases with their Visa Signature cards. For the first quarter of calendar year 2005, spending on Visa Signature totaled $24.4 billion, an 18.9 percent increase over the same period last year, as more Member financial institutions and co-brand partners launched new programs that resonated with the "New Affluent" consumer base. E[acute accent]Visa also reported strong gains in average ticket and total number of transactions made with Visa Signature cards during the quarter. Most notably, the average Visa Signature purchase was 34 percent larger than those on traditional Visa credit cards. During the quarter, the number of Visa Signature cards issued by Visa Member financial institutions increased more than 16 percent to 8.6 million cards for nearly 5.3 million accounts, a 17.3 percent increase. E[acute accent]"The strong growth in Visa Signature sales volume and in average ticket size illustrates the value the product provides to all of our stakeholders," said Jim McCarthy, senior vice president, consumer credit products, Visa USA. "Cardholders have emphatically adopted the incremental benefits and features that deliver against life's priorities, helping them achieve what they truly want to accomplish. At the same time, our merchant partners and Members reap the benefits of Visa Signature card usage, with this cardholder segment averaging more than seven times greater annual spend per account than traditional Visa consumer credit cardholders."

E[acute accent]Demonstrated Value

E[acute accent]This consumer spending milestone reaffirms Visa's value to a consumer segment called the "New Affluent." With average annual household income of more than $125,000, these cardholders look for added value in their payment products. Visa Signature delivers against these desires through the Visa Signature Dining program, providing exclusive access to reservations for hard-to-reserve tables at popular and new restaurants; Visa Signature Concierge, a round-the-clock service for personal and travel planning assistance; and Visa Signature Privileges, upgrades and discounts at some often world's finest merchants. E[acute accent]Visa Signature cardholders also benefit from Visa's unsurpassed merchant acceptance. According to a recent survey by National Retail Census of Product Distribution, Visa continues to lead overall acceptance in key categories of everyday spend; big ticket items, such as cars, home appliances and furniture; and emerging merchant sectors. E[acute accent]"The fact that all Visa branded products, like Visa Signature, are accepted at millions more merchant locations worldwide than other so-called premium brands, makes our cards so valuable to cardholders and merchants," said McCarthy.

E[acute accent]New Visa Signature Partners

E[acute accent]In the past month alone, Visa Signature co-branded programs were launched with Mercedes-Benz and Lexus, reinforcing the value of rewards card programs developed for this "New Affluent" audience. These new programs join a strong portfolio of airline, hotel and travel Visa Signature programs issued by institutions like Chase, Bank of America, MBNA and US Bank. E[acute accent]Today, Visa accounts for 42 percent of "New Affluent" consumer credit card spending, outpacing all other payment brands. Visa Signature accounted for nearly 19 percent of Visa USA's consumer credit sales volume in 2004.

E[acute accent]About Visa

E[acute accent]Visa USA is the nation's leading payment brand and largest payment system, enabling banks to provide their consumers and business customers with a wide variety of payment alternatives tailored to meet their evolving needs. Visa USA is committed to increasing the choice, convenience, acceptance, and security of Visa payments for all stakeholders in the payments systems - Members, cardholders and merchants. Through its 14,000 Member financial institutions, more than 463 million Visa-branded cards have been issued to cardholders in the United States. Last year, U.S.-based financial institutions rely on Visa's processing system, VisaNet, to facilitate $1.3 trillion in transactions with virtually 100 percent reliability. E[acute accent]Worldwide, cardholders in over 150 countries carry more than 1 billion Visa-branded cards, accounting for more than $3 trillion in annual transaction volume. E[acute accent]Visa offers a trusted, reliable and convenient way to access and mobilize financial resources - anytime, anywhere, anyway.