The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) has released an updated version of its popular credit card guide, Credit Cards and You. It incorporates recent changes to interest rates, service fees and other important credit card features such as inactive account charges. "We're committed to keeping Credit Cards and You current and accurate," states FCAC Commissioner Bill Knight. Credit Cards and You is available free of charge by calling: 1-866-461-3222 or at www.fcac.gc.ca At the end of 2003, an estimated 74.3 million credit cards were in circulation in Canada (down from 76.2 million at the end of 2002). This represents 3.1 cards for every Canadian over the age of 18. Of these, 50.4 million were Visa or MasterCard credit cards, and 23.9 million were cards issued by large department stores, gas companies and other issuers. At the end of 2003, about half of all credit cards in circulation were considered "active," meaning that, at some time during the year, they had activity on their account.
