In 1950 the Diners Chub in New York pioneered a charge card for meals, heralding the arrival of "plastic money," a credit account that the user paid off, with interest, at the end of each month. Eight years later American Express Company developed a card used for goods and services at member establishments across the country, again with the provision that the borrower pay the total balance monthly.

The Bank of America pioneered the first true domestic "revolving" credit card used nationally when it introduced the BankAmericard in 1959. The "revolving" concept meant that the card's user could make a minimum monthly payment and the balance would "revolve" to the next month's bill, with interest. Partly due to the large number of depositors at Bank of America and the fact that it was the nation's largest bank at the time, its credit - card soared in...