IN THE LATE 1950s, a Bank of America executive, Joseph P. Williams, created the BankAmericard, the first card to combine the attributes of other national credit cards and bank cards of the time. The new card was not limited to a local area and allowed users to pay only part of the balance outstanding on the cards in exchange for interest being added - creating an instant loan for customers.
If the balance was paid in full each month no charges were added. Sound familiar? It should. In the late '70s the card became known as Visa. Joseph Williams died November 8,2003.
