Infographic: The rise and fall of credit card accounts

By Juan Rodriguez

Compared to all other loans, credit card accounts rose faster before the recession and fell harder during and after it, according to New York Federal Reserve data.The bank's November 2010 Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit found that looking across all lending products, about 217 million accounts were closed during the four quarters that ended Sept. 30, while 158 million accounts were opened.

"Credit cards have been the primary source of the reductions in accounts over the past two years," the report says, with the number of open accounts down 24 percent from their peak in the second quarter of 2008. Coming out of the recession, card offers are rebounding, with rewards becoming more generous, though the volume of offers is not to pre-recession levels.

To use the graphic on your site, use the following code:

 <center><a href="http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/infographic-chart-statistics-rise-fall-credit-cards-1701.php"><img alt="CreditCards.com infographic: The rise and fall of credit card accounts" border="0" src="http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/images/infographic-credit-debt-loan-type.png" /></a> </center>

Published: June 28, 2011

	Three most recent Infographics stories: Infographic: Post-recession shifts in credit scores – Americans' post-recession credit scores have shifted, says FICO, with fewer people clustered at the ends of the scale and more people in the middle ... Infographic: Credit card companies at bottom of pack in 'forgiveness' – American consumers find credit card issuers to be the least forgivable industry, according to an April 2012 survey ... Infographic: College graduates afraid of not finding job – Respondents to an online survey say that of their worries after college, they are most afraid of not finding a job ...

	CreditCards.com's newsletter Did you like this story? Then sign up for CreditCards.com’s weekly e-newsletter for the latest news, advice, articles and tips. It's FREE. Once a week you will receive the top credit card industry news in your inbox. Sign up now!