Update On Visa Business Cards

For the four quarters ended June 30, 2006, small businesses worldwide made US$190 billion in purchases with their Visa Business cards, representing a compound annual growth rate of 32 percent. Visa Business is leading the growth within Visa Commercial, and is one of the fastest growing product segments for financial institutions.

"Small business owners worldwide want efficient payment and information solutions that help streamline cash flow and expense management so they can concentrate on growing their businesses," said Preet Chhokar, vice president, Visa Commercial, Visa International. "Reaching this milestone is a testament to the advantages Visa Business provides small businesses over cash and checks."

The potential for the growth of electronic payments is significant. Using the Commercial Consumption Expenditure (CCE) index, Visa International estimates that global business and government spending, excluding payroll and certain other capital expenditures, totaled nearly US$61 trillion in 2005. Small business CCE can represent upwards of 25 percent of total CCE, varying by country. One-third of this business spending could potentially be moved from cash to electronic payment systems, such as Visa Business products.

To help Visa member financial institutions tap into this opportunity, Visa recently published the Visa Business Expedition Pack, a 10-step program that offers advice on how to manage small business credit risk. Visa recently launched the program during a series of member workshops designed to help financial institutions anticipate lending obstacles, meet risk management challenges, and make proactive changes to implement successful small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) payment programs.