Visa vs MasterCard
In an economy which relies mostly on a credit system, it pays to be a wise consumer and deal with a credit card company that will give you the best set of benefits. This is precisely the reason why you need to make a comparison of the different credit card companies available ‘“ two of which are Visa and MasterCard.
To start right off, here’s a quick background of how these two credit card companies started. MasterCard was founded in 1966, and they are a multinational corporation dealing with the processing of payments between banks and merchants. Besides from credit cards, MasterCard debit cards can also be used to make purchases.
Visa, on the other hand, is a California-based company, founded in 1970, and the name stands for Visa International Service Association. They are considered as the world’s largest retail electronic payment network ‘“ which processes payments between merchants, businesses, consumers and even government entities. They also offer debit cards in addition to credit cards.
You should understand that both Visa and MasterCard are not themselves the ones issuing credit cards to consumers. Instead, they negotiate the setting up of the payment system between banks, merchants and other business establishments from around the world.
There was a time when Visa was accepted in more stores around the world compared to MasterCard, but this is no longer the case. Today, MasterCards are accepted wherever Visa card payments are processed. In terms of security for shopping online, Visa offers the ‘Verified by Visa’ scheme, while MasterCard uses the ‘SecureCode’ system. Both Visa and MasterCard also offer reward schemes which you can take advantage of when making purchases.
The interest rate, however, is something that will be determined by your bank ‘“ so always make a comparison of the Visa and MasterCard rates offered by the different banks.
Summary:
1. MasterCard was founded in 1966, while Visa was founded in 1970.
2. MasterCard’s headquarters is based in New York, while Visa has its main location in San Francisco, California.
3. MasterCard offers rewards schemes, and is a universally accepted card, while Visa also offers points for making purchases, and is a globally-recognized form of payment.