SAN RAMON, Calif. -- In an about-face to its stance on running its own credit-card operations, Chevron USA officials said it will be selling off its consumer and proprietary fleet-card programs to two separate entities.
The move is a way to focus on core operations while turning over credit-card responsibilities and new-product development to firms that excel in the field of financial products. A spokesperson for the company told CSP Daily News that a co-branded credit card with some sort of loyalty tie is definitely within the range of new products the company is considering.[image-nocss]
In a press release, Shariq Yosufzai, president of Chevron's global marketing department, said, We have a strong base of loyal customers with our proprietary credit-card business and are making this change to ensure they continue to have access to the latest features and options available within the credit-card market.
Chevron- and Texaco-branded consumer credit cards will go to GE Money Bank NA, Stamford, Conn., and the company's branded commercial credit cards will go to FleetCor Technologies Operating Co. LLC, a Norcross, Ga.-based company that handles commercial fleet cards. Chevron officials did not disclose prices paid for the operations. The transactions are subject to certain approvals, including regulatory, and they are expected to close later this year.
Publicly, Chevron has always touted its decision to operate one ofthe only oil-company-managed, proprietary credit card in the industry, and executives insist that this move is not about pulling back from that position.
The credit-card business environment is changing rapidly, said Danny Roden, vice president of Chevron's North American marketing unit in a press release. Consumers' usage patterns are changing, and they are looking for new payment products and features. Our goal is to provide payment products that attract and retain consumers, marketers and retailers.
Chevron officials said the company will collaborate with GE Money and FleetCor to continue to manage the overall customer experience, brands and image of its branded credit cards, adding that customers should not experience any changes to current service.
Chevron USA Inc. is an indirect, wholly owned subsidiary of Chevron Corp. Chevron Credit Bank NA is a partially owned subsidiary of Chevron USA. Chevron Corp. is an integrated energy company with approximately 58,000 employees. Chevron's subsidiaries conduct business in approximately 180 countries, with the larger company involved in exploring for, producing and transporting crude oil and natural gas; refining, marketing and distributing fuels and other energy products; generating power; designing and marketing large-scale energy efficiency solutions; and assessing the energy resources of the future, including biofuels and other renewable energy sources.
With more than $190 billion in assets, GE Money, a unit of General Electric Co., is a provider of credit services to consumers, retailers and auto dealers. GE Money offers a range of financial products, including private-label credit cards, personal loans, bank cards, auto loans and leases, mortgages, corporate travel and purchasing cards, debt consolidation and home equity loans and credit insurance.
FleetCor processes fuel-card transactions both domestically and internationally. It provides card-processing solutions for business fleets through branded products, including CCS, CFN, FleetNet, Fuelman, KeyFuels and Mannatec.
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