ABAEF: Get Smart About Credit campaign

Credit is more than just a plastic card you use to buy things—it is your financial trustworthiness. The decisions you make today about how you manage your credit and the rest of your finances will affect you for a long time to come. A bad credit history can haunt you for years, affecting your ability to get a new credit card, a bank loan or mortgage, and even a job.

Bankers across the country are committed to helping consumers "Get Smart About Credit." The programs and resources highlighted here teach consumers not only how to manage a credit card, but also how to read a credit report, protect personal financial information and recognize the signs of overspending. This isn't just nice-to-know information. These are need-to-know facts for anyone using credit - whether in the form of a credit card, student loan or car loan.

About this Web Site

On this Web site you'll find a broad range of programs provided by government agencies, financial education groups and the following: American Express, Bank of America, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Discover, GE Financial, HSBC, MasterCard, U.S. Bank, Visa, Washington Mutual and Wells Fargo. And while each program is different, all will provide you with the basic skills you need to better manage your credit.

You also can download tips on using credit, read the latest financial education research and learn about new industry programs and initiatives by clicking on Links and Resources, What Works, News and Event Calendar.

NEW! Featured Resource: Financial Calculators

Choose from more than 50 Financial Calculators to help Consumers determine how much home or auto loan they can afford, as well as what the best terms are for certain loans. There are also Retirement and Investment calculators to help you determine how much to save for your future. Financial calculators are available in English and Spanish.

ABA Education Foundation Financial Calculators

Visa Calculadoras

Featured Programs

Chase employee Karen
Melvin receives JA's
Outstanding Leadership
Award for her volunteer
efforts.

Junior Achievement's Finance Park, Sponsored in Part by Chase Card Services

One of 10 programs of its kind in the world, Junior Achievement of Delaware's Finance Park combines classroom lessons with a "real world" experience to give students the opportunity to learn and practice making financial decisions.

Chase is a major sponsor of Delaware's Finance Park, which will deliver financial education to over 10,000 students this year. Young people participating in the program show significant improvement in their financial literacy with students' financial knowledge increasing by an average of 32 percent between pre-and post-test scores.

Rep. Betty McCollum
speaks at a U.S. Bank
GSAC event.

Get Smart About Credit Program

Now in its fifth year, the ABA Education Foundation's Get Smart About Credit program has helped some 589 banks teach 153,647 students about using credit wisely.

From community banks to the nation's largest banks, Get Smart About Credit is a symbol of bankers' commitment to helping create financially literate customers and communities.

Citi GSAC event in
Paramus, N.J.

Get Smart About Credit lessons meet more than 60 nationally recognized education standards. Materials also align with aspects of the Jump$tart Coalition's Personal Finance Standards. Lessons focus on the fundamentals of credit, including: understanding account maintenance, interest rates and finance charges; reading a credit report; avoiding identity theft; and recognizing the signs of overspending.

Get Smart About Credit List of Participating Banks
About the ABA Education Foundation

For more information, contact the ABA Education Foundation.

Site Sponsored by:

Corporation for
American Banking LLC

Questions? E-mail the ABA Webmaster or Customer Service, or call 1-800-BANKERS (226-5377).
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