Fidelity National, a $370 million asset bank in Atlanta, has introduced the Centennial Olympic Games Visa card.
Imprinted with a holographic four-color depiction of the Olympic torch, the card is designed to commemorate the 1996 summer games to be held in Atlanta.
Visa International, an official Olympic sponsor, has been designated the official card for the games. A Visa spokesman said Fidelity National is one of 10 banks upproved by Visa to issue Olympic-type cards. Five have launched Olympic cards so far, mostly as reissued versions of existing credit card programs.
Fidelity National created the card as a new product with its own design to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Olympic games. The community bank is touting the Visa card as a collector's item.
Jim Miller, the bank's president and chairman, said he hopes to acquire 100,000 new accounts, which would double the number of accounts Fidelity National has now. The bank has about 90,000 credit card accounts and a $100 million in outstandings.
"We're just taking a step at a time and see how it goes," he said. "Frankly, it might be too successful."
The community bank is supporting its April launch with an aggressive advertising campaign, said George Harrison, a bank spokesman. "For now we're doing it regionally [because] the interest in the Olympics is somewhat regional," he said. "Later as it gets closer, we plan to go national."
Fidelity National has advertised the card in Atlanta newspapers and will broaden the coverage to regional papers. It has also made direct mail solicitations.
Centennial Olympic Games Visa sports a 7.9% teaser interest rate through Dec. 31, when the interest rate will rise to prime plus 6.9%.
Like other cards that tie annual fees to purchases, Fidelity National eliminate the $20 fee if usage exceeds $1,000. Mr. Harrison pointed out that's half the national average of consumer spending on credit cards.
Competitive pricing and a unique design are the key selling points of the card, he said. "I think the look of the card will have a lot to do with it," he added. "I think it will have an international appeal."
