Visa operates the Visa payment network and uses the stock symbol V.
Visa Inc. is a global payments-technology company whose network connects consumers, merchants, financial institutions, and governments. It generally does not issue cards, extend credit, or set account terms for cardholders; banks and other financial institutions perform those roles. Visa instead processes payment transactions through its network.
The company became publicly traded in a major 2008 initial public offering, which raised nearly $18 billion and ranked among the largest IPOs in U.S. history. Visa later became one of the world’s most valuable financial-services companies as electronic payments expanded.
Visa’s business model is often confused with that of card-issuing banks. A Visa-branded credit or debit card can be issued by many different banks, while Visa supplies the network infrastructure. Mastercard is its closest large network rival, whereas American Express commonly combines network and issuing functions.