NAPLES, Fla. -- Although many large bank issuers have turned away from the direct mail card offer many have also started offering 0% balance transfer offers on fixed rate cards, according to CardTrak.com (www.cardtrak.com).
The site tracks card and payment trends and reported that Bank of America, Chase, CitiGroup, Capital One and American Express have all launched fixed rate cards that carry 0% promotional rates for balances transfers. In the case of Bank of America and CitiGroup, those rates continue for a year or more.
In many of these cases, the interest rates on new purchases are as low as the prime rate plus 2.99% or 3.49%.
In the past, credit unions that were slow to actively manage their card portfolios lost a significant number of accounts to 0% balance transfer promotions
