topic Re: Does anyone remember Providian? in Credit Cards

Does anyone remember Providian?

Dilbert934 — Tue, 07 May 2024 19:24:27 GMT

I was cleaning some stuff out of post-move boxes and found a statement from Providian dated 1999. I had completely forgotten about them.

I seem to remember them catering to the sub-prime market, but I had a 7.99% APR and a $12k CL according to the statement. Never had any issues. That solves a mystery I've been trying to figure out for a long time....how did I wind up with 2 Chase cards? I had forgotten over the years how that came to be. Apparently Providian was bought out by WaMu, who in turn was bought out by Chase.

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

ptatohed — Tue, 07 May 2024 19:56:39 GMT

The name barely rings a bell, lol. To this day, I still have my "The Associates" (www.studentcreditcard.com (redirects you to citi!!!!)) little basketball backboard and hoop/net from when they came on the campus of SDSU in the 90s to pitch their cash back card. I can't remember but I want to say it was 1% CB?

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

gdale6 — Tue, 07 May 2024 20:31:09 GMT

Oh yeah, I had one, 10k @Anonymous.99% it went to CO status along with other cards in 2003.

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

TrapLine — Tue, 07 May 2024 20:46:33 GMT

Also, remember Providian. Had a personal and small business cards from them. As you mentioned, it went to WAMU and then to Chase.

The small business card always showed account number 4185 and to day with Chase it still shows 4185. Love it. That was a good many years ago 20+ I would dare say.

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

user979797 — Tue, 07 May 2024 22:58:52 GMT

I also remember Providian and had a few different cards through them including one card called a Aria card; Aria had three different cards and i had the Aria Persona which had a 500.00 credit limit and a 1k max limit. I was 18 and it was my first card Chase purchased their portfolio at some point.

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

PullingMeSoftly — Tue, 07 May 2024 23:05:26 GMT

Providian memory lane, sure do remember them...my Providian card is now my OG Freedom, my oldest account

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

Dilbert934 — Tue, 07 May 2024 23:32:06 GMT

Same here! Still have the OG Freedom.

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

Aim_High — Tue, 07 May 2024 23:47:29 GMT

I don't remember them, but all the fond memories seem rather odd to me. They apparently targeted the subprime market space with lower income consumers, charging them higher-than-normal interest rates. The founder of the company seemed to know he was taking advantage of his customers.

"In a March 1999 memorandum published by the San Francisco Chronicle, the founder of the company, Andrew Kahr, asked company executives about its customers: "Is any bit of food too small to grab when you're starving and when there is nothing else in sight? The trick is charging a lot, repeatedly, for small doses of instrumental [sic]credit." (see wikipedia link below)

Providian was involved in multiple class action lawsuits in the 1990's - early 2000's before being purchased by WAMU. According to wikipedia, they used misleading sales tactics and charged customers for products they didn't want including the credit protection plans, balance transfers, annual fees, and other services. They were ordered to repay $300 Million to consumers in a settlement agreement in 2000. It was, at that time, the largest enforcement action ever by the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC.) I would imagine the blow-out from all that is what led to the WAMU purchase in 2005.

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

PullingMeSoftly — Tue, 07 May 2024 23:48:09 GMT

@Aim_High wrote:
I don't remember them, but all the fond memories seem rather odd to me. They apparently targeted the subprime market space with lower income consumers, charging them higher-than-normal interest rates. The founder of the company seemed to know he was taking advantage of his customers.

"In a March 1999 memorandum published by the San Francisco Chronicle, the founder of the company, Andrew Kahr, asked company executives about its customers: "Is any bit of food too small to grab when you're starving and when there is nothing else in sight? The trick is charging a lot, repeatedly, for small doses of instrumental [sic]credit." (see wikipedia link below)

Providian was involved in multiple class action lawsuits in the 1990's - early 2000's before being purchased by WAMU. According to wikipedia, they used misleading sales tactics and charged customers for products they didn't want including the credit protection plans, balance transfers, annual fees, and other services. They were ordered to repay $300 Million to consumers in a settlement agreement in 2000. I would imagine the blow-out from all that is what led to the WAMU purchase in 2005.

True @Aim_High, they were a shady bank, but for me it's more of a thing about the era, good times in the late 90's (Nu-metal, grad school, good years). Providian is like the Limp Bizkit of banks, I'd rather forget about them, but they left their mark haha.

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

gorgon — Wed, 08 May 2024 00:06:57 GMT

I forgot all about Providian! I also ended up with a WaMu card that way. I closed it when Chase bought WaMu becuase they were going to raise the interest rate and I was carrying a balance. Since I didn't accept I got to keep the lower interest rate and pay it off.

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

Aim_High — Wed, 08 May 2024 00:12:25 GMT

@PullingMeSoftly wrote:

Providian is like the Limp Bizkit of banks, I'd rather forget about them, but they left their mark haha.

Sounds like that tatoo someone got on Spring Break

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

Creditaddict — Wed, 08 May 2024 06:47:21 GMT

There is a documentary of Providian and how it turned into a fraud thing with owner.

i worked at providian out of high school.

i called people that received a mailer and applied...

I had to verify, ask to add authorized user (fee) add some shopping thing or insurance (fee)

then click complete.

it showed me $500, $1000 or $5000 but I wasn't allowed to tell the customer... never made sense to me!

but I think this was the later part of providian because it was sub market and I know they had much higher end cards originally....

I know providian was the first online credit system I remember that you could get pre-approved and shown a deposit and limit... I believe that was when they went fraud'ish but it was revolutionary at the time to get that info when applying I feel like.

heck, most banks still don't show that info when applying in 2024!!

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

UncleB — Wed, 08 May 2024 20:36:43 GMT

Ah, Providian... I also have lots of memories of them. My memories are also more of the era than the card, although at the time the card they offered me wasn't terrible by any means. Sadly I ended up having a financial meltdown a few years after obtaining their card and it didn't end well.

Ironically, the account went to WaMu and then Chase during my meltdown period. I remember getting a Chase Freedom Visa card with the same number, but it never worked (the account was in the process of being closed by this time). This is why years later once all my baddies started aging off I was in no hurry to apply for anything with Chase, since they're known to have a long memory.

For those keeping score, Chase *did* remember, but apparently weren't/aren't too worried about it since I eventually ended up approved for several Chase cards. After my first Chase approval when I established an online login I found my old phone number from years ago in my new profile, so there's no doubt they "remembered," LOL.

I also had a card with "The Associates" back in the 90s... mine had a $300 credit line, and an atrocious APR (even for that time) - and I had good credit then! That was one of the few cards that I closed back in the 90s - it was that terrible, which says a lot since I would take a card with (almost) anybody who would have me back then.

Another "oldie but goodie" was Juniper Bank. That one also ended badly (see above) and is why I can't get a card with Barclays today. (I'll always regret what happened, but I admit I'm not too torn-up over missing out on Barclays.)

Last but not least was Orchard Bank, which was a subsidiary of HSBC. After the 'meltdown' mentioned above I opened this account just to have a card that wasn't debit, and it was the best of the terrible options I had. It started with a $300 credit line and a $79AF, although it did have 2% rewards (with the options I had rewards were truly a bonus). After several years, HSBC sold the portfolio to Capital One, and that card is now my 17 year-old Savor WEMC grandfathered with no AF, and with a $6500 credit line (a redemption story for a stinker of a card if there ever was one). Fun fact, the card number is the same now as it was back when the account was with Orchard Bank with the $300 credit line, haha.

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

Creditaddict — Wed, 08 May 2024 20:40:58 GMT

@UncleB wrote:
Ah, Providian... I also have lots of memories of them. My memories are also more of the era than the card, although at the time the card they offered me wasn't terrible by any means. Sadly I ended up having a financial meltdown a few years after obtaining their card and it didn't end well.

Ironically, the account went to WaMu and then Chase during my meltdown period. I remember getting a Chase Freedom Visa card with the same number, but it never worked (the account was in the process of being closed by this time). This is why years later once all my baddies started aging off I was in no hurry to apply for anything with Chase, since they're known to have a long memory.

For those keeping score, Chase *did* remember, but apparently weren't/aren't too worried about it since I eventually ended up approved for several Chase cards. After my first Chase approval when I established an online login I found my old phone number from years ago in my new profile, so there's no doubt they "remembered," LOL.

I also had a card with "The Associates" back in the 90s... mine had a $300 credit line, and an atrocious APR (even for that time) - and I had good credit then! That was one of the few cards that I closed back in the 90s - it was that terrible, which says a lot since I would take a card with (almost) anybody who would have me back then.

Another "oldie but goodie" was Juniper Bank. That one also ended badly (see above) and is why I can't get a card with Barclays today. (I'll always regret what happened, but I admit I'm not too torn-up over missing out on Barclays.)

Last but not least was Orchard Bank, which was a subsidiary of HSBC. After the 'meltdown' mentioned above I opened this account just to have a card that wasn't debit, and it was the best of the terrible options I had. It started with a $300 credit line and a $79AF, although it did have 2% rewards (with the options I had rewards were truly a bonus). After several years, HSBC sold the portfolio to Capital One, and that card is now my 17 year-old Savor WEMC grandfathered with no AF, and with a $6500 credit line (a redemption story for a stinker of a card if there ever was one). Fun fact, the card number is the same now as it was back when the account was with Orchard Bank with the $300 credit line, haha.

Better memory than me but now that you mention them... I had them all!

there was one for with a G I think... same time as associates... they seemed to be the biggest college pushing cards🤔

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

Slabenstein — Wed, 08 May 2024 21:20:50 GMT

@UncleB wrote:
Fun fact, the card number is the same now as it was back when the account was with Orchard Bank with the $300 credit line, haha.

In these days of rampant BIN attacks and skimmers, that's an accomplishment.

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

Dilbert934 — Sat, 11 May 2024 22:22:36 GMT

@Aim_High wrote:
I don't remember them, but all the fond memories seem rather odd to me. They apparently targeted the subprime market space with lower income consumers, charging them higher-than-normal interest rates. The founder of the company seemed to know he was taking advantage of his customers.

I remember that as well. IIRC, I got a pre-approval in the mail with the 7.99% interest and no fee, so I figured I'd give it a try. I didn't know about them reaching out to the subprime market until a few months later after doing some research on them. I did some Google-fu and found an old website that listed the Providian Aria as 7.99% fixed. That must have been the one I had. I do see they also had an Aria Portrait at a 20.24% Variable APR, which appears to be high based on other cards the website lists.

Here is the site if you want a trip down memory lane.

2000 Credit Card Survey

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

Zoostation1 — Sun, 12 May 2024 14:44:36 GMT

I never had a cardwith them, but I remember the mailers around the time I got my first card in college (started with a $300 Capital One MC).

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

Meanmchine — Tue, 14 May 2024 03:30:37 GMT

I had a Providian card that was 120 days late when Wamu bought them out, then Chase. Instantly, I was put on Chase's BL til 2020. I still have the physical card lieing around somewhere

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

woodyman100 — Tue, 14 May 2024 03:35:11 GMT

Had one in the 90's. Had no clue about what a predatory lender was back then.

I used it and a few others and it helped my credit immensely.

im wiser about it now though and know to choose a cheaper route

Re: Does anyone remember Providian?

kerplunk — Tue, 14 May 2024 03:49:58 GMT

When I was 16 years old, I created a website and fully funded it using my mother's Providian credit card. I maxed out the card's $20K limit, with around 32.99% APR. (No idea why she trusted me throughout all this -- we were not rich.) It was insane, but the website took off and I paid it down quickly. I'm not sure if she kept the card after that, but when I turned 19, I got my own Providian card. WaMu bought them, then Chase bought WaMu. I still have that account open today. Thanks for bringing back the memories!