In Brief: Providian Buying 600,000 Card Accounts

Providian Financial Corp. has signed an agreement to buy 600,000 credit card accounts, with $350 million of receivables, from Morgan Stanley Dean Witter's Bravo portfolio.

Morgan Stanley, which issues the Discover card, discontinued the Bravo card in January. The accounts Providian is buying are of strong credit quality, said a Providian spokeswoman.

"This acquisition is consistent with our long-term growth strategy," said Providian's chief executive, Shailesh Mehta. Within the past year Providian has bought two portfolios from First Union Corp., each with $1.1 billion of receivables.

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