Credit Card Glossary : Terms: B

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Credit Card Glossary – B

Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal procedure that offers a new start for people who simply can't pay off their debts. Seek financial and/or legal counsel before taking such action. Generally considered a last-resort solution, as bankruptcy will remain on your credit report for 10 years.

Balance transfer
Moving outstanding balances from one credit card to another. Special fees may apply to this type of transaction. Also, if you transfer balances you may lose the right to dispute any of those charges.

Balance forward
When you do not pay your credit card bill in full each month, you are carrying a "balance forward". Interest and other finance charges are calculated based on this balance.

Balance transfer fee
Many credit cards charge a one-time fee for balance transfer services. However, cards offering special balance transfer promotions may offer this service fee-free.

Balance transfer APR
Many cards charge a separate APR on transferred balances. The balance transfer APR is generally slightly higher than the APR for purchases, but many newer cards may offer special balance transfer rates to encourage cardholders to transfer balances from other cards. Special rates usually apply for a specified period of time and apply only to balances transferred during the promotion.

Balance
An outstanding amount of money. In deposit banking, balance refers to the amount of money in a particular account. In credit, balance refers to the amount owed.

Bank Identification Number (Bin)
The first six digits of a Visa or MasterCard account number. This number is used to identify the card issuing institution.

Bad Credit
A term used to describe a poor credit rating. Common practices that can damage a credit rating include making late payments, skipping payments, exceeding card limits or declaring bankruptcy. “Bad Credit” can result in being denied credit.

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