"The WEFA study shows that the aggressive worldwide marketing efforts by Visa and its Member financial institutions and our broad acceptance are making Visa the clear choice of international travelers in the core TE categories," said Tom Shepard, senior vice president, Marketing Partnerships and Sponsorship, Visa International. "By developing strategic alliances with many of the leading global TE companies, we have enabled our Members to offer their cardholders exceptional value wherever their travels may take them," he added.

The WEFA study indicates that in 1997, travelers used their Visa cards to purchase more than $120 billion in core TE products and services worldwide, representing over 38% of total TE purchases for payment cards and a 7% edge over Visa's closest competitor in the category, American Express (31%). This is an indicator of the international traveler's preference for Visa-branded products and services.

WEFA defines core international TE payment card spending as air travel purchases, auto rentals, and cruise and lodging made by individuals worldwide using a payment card. WEFA's report maintains that worldwide spending on core TE segments totaled $680 billion in 1997.

Key data featured in the WEFA study that serve as proof points of Visa's leadership in TE include:

• Worldwide Lodging Expenditures - Visa was the leading payment card in this category with 38.5% of card sales. American Express had 29% of payment card purchases in 1997, and MasterCard had 22%.
• World Cruise Sales - The WEFA study illustrates preference for Visa in this category, with Visa obtaining 46% of world cruise card sales. American Express was significantly lower at 25%, and MasterCard had 22%.
• World Air Travel Sales - Visa led payment card spending in this category with 39% in 1997, in comparison to American Express at 34%, and MasterCard (18%).
• World Auto Rental Sales - Visa led this category with 37% of worldwide auto rentals. American Express had 35% and MasterCard had 19%.

"It took WEFA several months to complete this major study of the travel and entertainment business," said Mark Lauritano, senior vice president, WEFA Group. "As a result of our data analysis and based on extensive research, it became evident that Visa's market share in travel and entertainment has grown significantly. We anticipate global core TE sales to increase as we approach the next millennium and forecast that Visa will continue to grow in the travel and entertainment arena," he added.

Visa seamlessly operates more than 40 innovative destination programs that span the globe, delivering value-added benefits to cardholders as well as the travel agent community. Current destination programs such as Australia Prefers Visa entitle international travelers to discounts and exclusive values at restaurants, retail stores and attractions. This program reflects Visa's marketing synergy of leveraging its worldwide sponsorship of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney to driving tourism and increasing Visa's volume in one of the world's most popular destinations.

Another of Visa's innovative destination programs, Impressions of Asia, is one of the largest-ever destination marketing campaigns for Asia-Pacific designed not only to enhance the travel experience with value-added options, but also to help increase tourism to the region. The offers will be featured in national consumer and trade print advertising and marketing efforts. The extensive program targets U.S. travelers in an effort to increase travel to Asia and the Pacific. The program -- endorsed by the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) -- is a collaboration between Visa and Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza in conjunction with Time Warner's Emphasis (the region's largest producer of in-flight entertainment).

As the World's Best Way to Pay, Visa is the leading payment brand and the largest consumer payment system worldwide with more volume than all other major payment cards combined. Visa plays a pivotal role in advancing new payment products and technologies to benefit its 21,000 member financial institutions and their cardholders. Visa has more than 70 smart card programs in 33 countries and on the Internet, with 23 million Visa chip cards, including over 8 million Visa Cash cards. Visa is pioneering SET Secure Electronic Transaction(TM) programs to enable and advance Internet commerce. There are more than 630 million Visa-branded cards, which generate over US$1.3 trillion in annual volume. Visa is accepted at more than 15 million worldwide locations, including at over 450,000 ATMs in the Visa Global ATM Network. Visa's Internet address is http:/www.visa.com.

WEFA is a full-service economic and information consulting firm providing a broad range of services to over 1200 clients in 45 countries. A staff of 250 economists with a wide range of language and cultural skills continuously monitors the world's economies from 16 offices worldwide. WEFA is a subsidiary of Primark Corporation, a $450 million global provider of information technology solutions, combining software and applications with some of the most accurate, timely, and comprehensive databases available.