The Enchanted Chartered Card

It is amazing how a small plastic card could bring us so much pleasure. The system of cash advance, or better known as credit cards began in the 1990s and has improvised long since. Many working adults in this era opt for the convenience of this little 8.5 X5.3 cm laminated stiff paper.

Just like the illustrious catchphrase, "priceless" is the price that you pay when you shop using credit cards.

Unlike a prepaid or a charge card, this advanced cash system allows the customers to purchase items with money that they do not personally have in their account. The borrowed amount is due to be paid at a specified duration of time, depending on the financial institution''s policies. The agreed duration for the settlement treaty is called the grace period and it is usually 25 to 40 days after the purchase. If for any reasons, the holder has yet to fully settle the indebted amount within the grace period, an interest is imposed on the full amount which was borrowed regardless of how much the balance is left. The interest rate is sometimes 1-3% of the full borrowed amount, and a default rate is applied when an outstanding balance from the month before is left unpaid. Most banks do not measure grace periods after the first month.

Some banks in European countries offer a guarantee for payment of stolen credit cards. In Denmark, Sweden and Norway, customers are allowed to purchase goods even when their credit cards were stolen. They are required to note down their ID numbers and other required personal banking details on the receipt of the purchase.

Business owners benefit greatly from purchases which are paid via cash advance systems provided by banks. Although the traders may receive the payment slightly later as compared to the payments made by cash, a small discount fee is deposited into the trader''s account. Apart from that, electronic transfer payments ensure business owners a lesser risk of thievery within the circle of employees as the same rule cannot be applied to cash payments.

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