Inventor: Frank McNamara, an American businessman

The earliest institutions that issued credit cards were not banks, but some department stores, restaurants, entertainment industries and gasoline companies. In order to attract customers, sell goods and expand turnover, some shops and restaurants in the United States selectively gave customers a kind of credit chip similar to a metal badge in a certain range, which later evolved into a card made of plastic as a proof of customers' purchase consumption, and launched a credit sales service for purchasing goods in this firm or company or a gasoline station with the credit chip. Customers can buy goods on credit at these chip-issuing shops and their semicolons and pay on schedule. This is the prototype of credit card. It is said that one day, Frank McNamara, an American businessman, entertained guests at a restaurant in new york. After eating, he found that he had forgotten his wallet with him, so he was deeply embarrassed and had to call his wife to bring cash to the restaurant to settle the bill. So McNamara came up with the idea of creating a credit card company. In the spring of 195, McNamara and his good friend Schneider jointly invested 1, US dollars to establish Diners Club in new york, the predecessor of Diners Credit Card Company.