Visa introduces PC-based software for analyzing credit card business.

Visa International has introduced personal computer-based software to help bank executives analyze their credit card businesses.

The software, called Visa Vue, pulls together data on market share, customer spending patterns, and the reliability of the bank's credit card processing systems.

Visa said several banks are testing the software, but association officials declined to name them.

Easier Availability

Visa has made this information available to member institutions on request, and for a fee, before now. Visa's back-office systems upgrade, the Payment Service 2000 initiative, has enabled the organization to make the information available more easily.

"This is information that is costly for bank executives to get from their own data-processing departments," said Pat Edwards, vice president of information services at Visa.

Visa is marketing two products to member institutions. Software called Market Advantage gives a snapshot of a Visa member's issuing or merchant business, and compares it to the overall marketplace.

Comparisons Can Be Made

For example, bankers can compare the size of charges made by their gold card customers with charges made on cards issued by competing banks.

Another package called Performance Plus lets members review the performance of their product lines and the reliability of their systems. The software monitors chargebacks, and point of sale and automated teller machine authorizations.

Bankers can review how many transactions were declined in a given month, by card type. They can also review how their authorization rates for gold cards compare with the average authorization rates in the region.

A Deterrent to Fraud

Members can view chargeback data, and identify and review the merchants where chargebacks occurred. Visa says this ability can help members cut down on merchant fraud.

The information is updated each month. Members can receive the data in one of three ways. Visa can send a personal computer diskette containing the month's data. Or, members can dial into Visa's host computer and download the data, or Visa can distribute it via electronic mail.

The software runs on personal computers from International Business Machines Corp. and Apple Computer Inc.

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