National City Bank has become the first bank to sell instant-issue Visa gift cards at its branch locations, providing shoppers with the ideal gift just in time for the busy holiday season. The prepaid National City Gift Card, which is available at more than 1,100 branch banking locations throughout National City’s six-state region and online at NationalCity.com, can be purchased in any amount between $25 and $500. Unlike gift certificates or single-merchant gift cards, the Visa- branded Gift Card is universally accepted at all 25 million Visa merchant locations worldwide.
The National City Visa Gift Card is ideal for shoppers who want to give something innovative and thoughtful to friends, relatives and co-workers, but who cannot decide on the perfect gift. Whatever the purpose, the National City Visa Gift Card provides recipients with purchasing convenience and flexibility. The Gift Card offers significant benefits over cash and checks, as all of Visa’s consumer security protection policies apply.
“The National City Visa Gift Card is our way of providing consumers with a great new option when shopping for gifts during the holiday season and beyond,” said Sarah Hartman, executive vice president for National City Electronic Banking Services. “Not only does the Gift Card save shoppers time, but it also allows recipients the flexibility to make their own purchases when and where they choose. We are excited to be the first bank to give our customers the option of purchasing the Visa Gift Card in our branches as well as online via our website.”
“The new Visa Gift Card is the latest example of how Visa is creating products that respond to the needs of the market,” said Todd Brockman, vice president of Prepaid Consumer Products for Visa U.S.A. “National City and Visa are providing an appealing solution during this holiday season that satisfies the needs of both the gift buyer and recipient.”
Consumers can choose from the convenience of a non-personalized National City Visa Gift Card available for immediate purchase at any branch location and Telephone Banking Centers, or a personalized Gift Card that is embossed with the name of the gift recipient. The personalized Gift Card can be ordered at any branch location, Telephone Banking Center, or online at [www.NationalCity.com][1] and is received by the purchaser or recipient within five to seven business days.
About National City
National City Corporation (NYSE: NCC), headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, is one of the nation’s largest financial holding companies. The company operates through an extensive distribution network in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan and Pennsylvania, and also serves customers in selected markets nationally. Its primary businesses include commercial and retail banking, consumer finance, asset management, mortgage financing and servicing, and payment processing. For more information about National City Corporation, visit the company’s Web site at NationalCity.com.
About Visa U.S.A.
Visa is the world’s leading payment brand and largest consumer payment system, enabling banks to provide their consumer and merchant customers with a wide variety of payment alternatives. More than 14,000 U.S. financial institutions rely on Visa’s processing system, VisaNet, to facilitate over $915 billion in annual transaction volume – including roughly half of all Internet payments – with virtually 100 percent reliability. U.S. consumers carry 376 million Visa-branded smart, credit, commercial, prepaid and check cards, accepted at approximately 24 million locations worldwide. Visa’s people, partnerships, brand, payment technology and security standards are helping to create universal commerce – the ability to safely conduct transactions anytime, anywhere, any way. For more information about Visa, please visit [www.visa.com][2].
[1]: http://www.NationalCity.com
[2]: http://www.visa.com
