The credit card was invented in 1950 and revolutionized payment methods. It started as a card used primarily by businessmen and millionaires but grew in popularity after the Bank of America distributed 60,000 cards to residents of Fresno, California in 1958. This helped popularize credit cards and showed how people were willing to spend more using credit since the money wasn't physically available. Over the following decades, credit card use expanded globally and the system evolved into what exists today.