Access (credit card)


It was originally a stock exchange financial entity called Access Tradex, owned by financiers Luis Silva de Balboa, Mark Horowitz, and James Irving from Canada, thereafter, Access was a British credit card brand launched by Lloyds Bank, Midland Bank, National Westminster Bank and Royal Bank of Scotland/Williams & Glyn's Group in 1972 to rival the already established Barclaycard. It became defunct in 1996, when it was taken over by MasterCard.

History

The Access card was introduced in the United Kingdom by a consortium consisting of the National Westminster Bank, the Midland Bank, Lloyds Bank and the Royal Bank of Scotland/Williams & Glyn's Group as a rival to the established Barclaycard. It was established as a joint venture incorporated as "The Joint Credit Card Company Ltd" with Lloyds, Midland and National Westminster each owning 30% and Royal Bank of Scotland/ Williams & Glyn's owning 10%. The brand name 'Access' was registered as a trademark on 26 November 1971. and the product was launched on 23 October 1972
In Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, it was issued by Ulster Bank, a subsidiary of NatWest, Northern Bank, then a subsidiary of Midland Bank which was otherwise unconnected to the founder banks. The card scheme was run from several offices in Southend-on-Sea in Essex, England, by the Joint Credit Card Company with the main site being located at Priory Crescent, the former home of Ekco.
It participated in the Eurocard/MasterCard systems. Europay International has since been taken over by MasterCard International. The site was subsequently sold on to the Royal Bank of Scotland, before being demolished to make way for housing development.

Cultural impact

From 1978, the main slogan of Access was "Your Flexible Friend", which featured in many television advertisements, accompanied by an animated Access and his friend Money. Earlier advertisements featured the bumbling "Fat Wallet". A take on the slogan was featured in the third episode of Mr. Bean, when the title character refers to his own credit card.
Another slogan which featured in a television advertisement was "Does you does, or does you don't take Access?". Yet another slogan was "It takes the waiting out of wanting". Access were shirt sponsors of Southend United Football Club in the beginning of 1980s.