Visa Launches National Financial Education Program for College Students; Provides 5,000 Free FICO(R) Credit Scores

SAN FRANCISCO, March 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Marking the start of a significant new effort to improve the financial literacy level of America's college students, Visa USA today announced the national launch of its What's My Score program, which includes giving away 5,000 free FICO credit scores.

Coming on the eve of "Financial Literacy Month," which is held annually in April to promote the importance of financial literacy, Visa's announcement to provide free FICO(R) scores and comprehensive financial education resources to college students coincides with the company's release of a new survey of credit and debit cardholders that shows that only 17 percent of those surveyed knew their FICO credit score by the time they were 21 years old.

"College students are in desperate need of personal finance education that can help them manage their money responsibly," said Jason Alderman, director of financial education for Visa USA. "What's My Score is a major expansion of Visa's decade-long commitment to financial literacy and provides substantive educational resources for college students through an innovative web site."

What's My Score (http://www.whatsmyscore.org/) explains and demystifies credit scores for college students and provides free information on how young adults can improve their scores. In addition, a wide variety of resources help students learn the basics of financial management, including: budgeting, saving, paying for college, buying a car, getting a first job, protecting their identity and critically evaluating different loans. There are also comprehensive materials available to assist college professors and administrators in teaching students about these vital financial life skills. All of the resources on "What's My Score" are being provided to students and colleges at no cost.

Up to 5,000 college students will receive their FICO score for free, courtesy of myFICO, Fair Isaac Corporation's (NYSE: FIC) consumer division. Visa and Fair Isaac are working cooperatively on a robust college outreach campaign to raise awareness for "What's My Score." The 5,000 free FICO credit scores for college students are available on a first-come, first-serve basis through the "What's My Score" web site at http://www.whatsmyscore.org/.

To receive their FICO score, students will first have to take a free 15- minute online financial education tutorial, designed to provide a crash course in responsible credit use.

In addition, myFICO offers a free FICO Score Estimator that allows younger consumers, who are just starting to develop a credit history, to estimate what their FICO score might be. This FICO Score Estimator is available at both http://www.myfico.com/ficocreditscoreestimator and http://www.whatsmyscore.org/.

"We share a longstanding commitment with Visa and the What's My Score program to help more young adults get engaged, excited and serious about financial responsibility," said Andy Jolls, vice president of myFICO. "We look forward to working with Visa to further promote these valuable tools and resources to help young adults make smart financial decisions."

Additional key findings of Visa's credit and debit cardholder survey include:

  -- Just 64% of cardholders surveyed knew their credit score by the age of
     40
  -- Surprisingly, 15% of those cardholders surveyed never learned their
     score

"Not knowing your credit score is the financial equivalent of driving with your eyes closed," said Alderman from Visa. "America's college students are bordering on the edge of financial illiteracy and we are tackling this problem head on."

Visa announced the acquisition of "What's My Score" on January 25, 2007. The program was originally developed by the Responsible Credit Partnership (RCP) when it was a special project of The Saint Paul Foundation. RCP became a part of The Center for Financial Services Innovation on January 1, 2007, which then spun "What's My Score" off to Visa.

In addition to "What's My Score," Visa also runs the award-winning Practical Money Skills for Life program (http://www.practicalmoneyskills.com/), a free, multilingual educational resource complete with home, school and at work financial lesson plans. Practical Money Skills for Life is aimed primarily at teachers and students in elementary through high school, as well adult consumers. The acquisition of "What's My Score" allows Visa to dramatically expand the reach of the company's financial education efforts to the nation's 17.5 million college students.

About myFICO and Fair Isaac

The FICO credit score is used to make billions of credit decisions each year, including more than 75 percent of mortgage loan originations. In addition, more than 40 of the nation's 50 largest financial institutions rely on the FICO score to help them determine an individual's credit risk. Through the myFICO.com web site, consumers use the company's FICO scores, the standard measure of credit risk, to manage their financial health.

Fair Isaac Corporation (NYSE: FIC) is the preeminent provider of creative analytics that unlock value for people, businesses and industries. The company's predictive modeling, decision analysis, intelligence management, decision management systems and consulting services power billions of mission- critical customer decisions a year. Founded in 1956, Fair Isaac helps thousands of companies in over 60 countries acquire customers more efficiently, increase customer value, reduce fraud and credit losses, lower operating expenses and enter new markets more profitably. Most leading banks and credit card issuers rely on Fair Isaac solutions, as do insurers, retailers, telecommunications providers, healthcare organizations and government agencies. For more information about FICO scores and myFICO consumer products, please visit http://www.myfico.com/.

About Visa USA

Visa USA is the nation's leading payment brand and largest payment system, enabling banks to provide their consumers and business customers with a wide variety of payment alternatives tailored to meet their evolving needs. Visa USA is committed to increasing the choice, convenience, acceptance and security of Visa payments for all stakeholders in the payment system -- members, cardholders and merchants. Through its 13,382 member financial institutions, more than 510 million Visa-branded cards have been issued to cardholders in the United States. Worldwide, cardholders in more than 150 countries carry more than 1 billion Visa-branded cards, accounting for more than $3 trillion in annual transaction volume. VisaNet, Visa's global processing system and the world's largest financial network, processes transactions with unparalleled reliability. Visa offers a trusted, reliable and convenient way to access and mobilize financial resources -- anytime, anywhere, any way.