Morgan Stanley's UK credit card business today announced the completion of its acquisition of the Goldfish credit card business ("Goldfish"), a deal which has increased Morgan Stanley's UK credit card accounts by 47%.
With the transaction now complete, Morgan Stanley intends to reignite interest in Goldfish, a brand which represented the second most recognised credit card in the UK in 2003.1 Like Morgan Stanley, Goldfish built a loyal customer base by rewarding its customers for everyday use of their credit card. Morgan Stanley plans to use the two brands to appeal to a wider, more diverse customer segment and tailor each credit card accordingly.
The acquisition sees Morgan Stanley build on its strong portfolio of credit cards and closely follows the recent launch of the 'ultra-premium' i24™ Card, demonstrating Morgan Stanley's continued expansion in the UK credit card market.
In addition to the Goldfish acquisition, Morgan Stanley is looking to increase its affinity partnerships following the recent announcement of a credit card developed for Black Horse loan customers. Morgan Stanley also has long standing partnerships with Leeds Building Society and buy and fly!. Morgan Stanley will continue to develop its market leading Cashback Bonus™ award at a time when many card providers are reducing their cash back offers.
Charlotte Hogg, managing director of Morgan Stanley's UK credit card business commented: "We are delighted to have completed our acquisition of the Goldfish business and are looking forward to working with Goldfish employees and customers. Over the next few months we will be developing the Goldfish offering to accurately reflect the types of rewards that customers value. Goldfish customers can be assured that any changes will only serve to enhance the offering."
NOTES FOR EDITORS:
Morgan Stanley Credit Cards
Morgan Stanley is one of the world's largest providers of credit cards with more than 50 million cardholders globally, mainly in the US through the Discover Card issued on the Discover network.
The Morgan Stanley Card was launched in the UK on the MasterCard network in September 1999 with two credit cards offering a Cashback Bonus™ award. In April 2000, two further credit cards were introduced, and then, in March 2002, Morgan Stanley Consumer Banking launched its first co-branded card with Leeds Building Society. May 2004 marked the launch of the Morgan Stanley buy and fly! MasterCard, a card that enables customers to collect points wherever they spend and redeem these points on a variety of travel rewards.
In September 2005, Morgan Stanley created an affinity partnership with Black Horse, part of Lloyds TSB Asset Finance Division. In November 2005, Morgan Stanley's UK credit card operation announced the launch of its ultra-premium card - the i24™ Card.
For further information on Morgan Stanley's UK Credit Card business, visit www.morganstanley.com/cards.
Morgan Stanley in Scotland
Morgan Stanley has invested in Scotland since 1999, both in developing middle and back office capability in Glasgow, as well as the Card Operations Centre in Cumbernauld. The Firm now employs around 1,500 people in Scotland. In addition to its financial services operation centre in Cumbernauld, which provides customer service and related support for its consumer banking activities, Morgan Stanley opened a private wealth management office in 2001 and, in 2002, set-up an infrastructure office supporting its institutional equity and fixed income sales and trading divisions.
Emma Harvey
Morgan Stanley
020 7425 9367
Holly Clark
FD Consumer Dynamics
020 7269 7171