BANK CARD ASSOCIATION

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Ассоциация банковских карточек: организация типа Визы и Мастеркард, которая принадлежит финансовым учреждениям и занимается лицензированием выпуска банковских карточек, авторизацией операций по карточкам, расчетами, установлением размера комиссий за обработку сделок.

An organization owned by financial institutions that licenses bank credit card programs. The Bank Card Association also performs operational functions for its members, including transaction processing and authorizations, interchange settlements and fee processing.

The two national and best-known bank card associations, VISA and MasterCard, have become publicly-traded companies. There are many regional bank card associations, however, that may be owned by a single bank or a consortium. These smaller organizations issue more retail credit cards.