Travel the world with the currency of the world

Singapore, 20 November 2008

Visa launches a new travel-focused advertising campaign in Asia Pacific celebrating the joy of travel

Why deal with the hassle of currency exchange when you've got the currency of the world in your pocket? With the holiday season right around the corner, Visa is reminding consumers to travel with their favorite card that is accepted at more than 29 million merchants around the world. 
 
Visa's new travel-focused commercial recreates the dance made famous by internet celebrity Matt Harding in his self-made quirky video travel diaries. After tickling the funny bones of millions from the internet community for four years, Matt repeats his signature jig in China, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, the USA and Vietnam - to celebrate how Visa has freed him from the hassle of exchanging cash for each country's local currency as he travels around the world.
 
The 'travel happy' dance continues in Visa's second commercial in the campaign, this time by various merchants including cruise operators, hotel and restaurant staff, tour guides, and taxi drivers from China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore and Vietnam, all performing their renditions of Matt's famous dance. The message is simple - merchants around the world accept Visa, the universal currency that regardless of which part of the world their customers come from, possess.
 
The new commercials make their Asia Pacific debut in Hong Kong and Korea today and will be telecast in eight countries and territories in the region over the next few weeks.
 
"We've attempted to capture a very common love for travel in our new campaign - celebrating the multi-cultural, multi-faceted face of travel with the singular card that makes it possible. Even in this current economic climate  research tells us that almost seven out of ten people do not expect to postpone traveling altogether [1] but would look at alternative destinations or travel within their own country," said Rajiv Kapoor, general manager, marketing for Asia Pacific at Visa.
 
"Whatever one's budget, there's a holiday option and a Visa card to fit their pocket and travel needs. For those looking to manage their budget, Visa Debit cards and Visa Travel Prepaid cards provide cardholders with easy access to either their own funds or a preset amount of money anywhere in the world. Alternatively, Visa credit cards give cardholders access to a line of credit which may be useful for an unexpected purchase on their holidays," said Mr. Kapoor.
 
Commenting on his dance and his own approach to travel, Matt Harding said, "Dance and the world dances with you - that has been such a visible part of my journey as I traveled around the world. I've had the good fortune to travel so extensively over the past few years, but a lot of the places that I've visited require a "light" approach to travel. I don't carry too much with me and there are some tools that I guess every traveler values - including something as simple as a global currency - which is what a Visa card is. There are so many wonderful things to see and do around the world and if my little dance makes someone smile and decide to book their next overseas holiday, I say go for it!"
 
Matt first shot to internet fame when his viral videos of him dancing in front of landmarks and street scenes in various international locations were first posted online in 2004. His latest video that was only posted on YouTube on 20 June 2008 has already been viewed 12,080,288 times as of 19 November 2008.
 
The new television commercial was conceptualized and developed by BBDO and was filmed on location in China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, Vietnam and the United States.
 

About Visa

Visa operates the world's largest retail electronic payments network providing processing services and payment product platforms. This includes consumer credit, debit, prepaid and commercial payments, which are offered under the Visa, Visa Electron, Interlink and PLUS brands. Visa enjoys unsurpassed acceptance around the world and Visa/PLUS is one of the world's largest global ATM networks, offering cash access in local currency in more than 170 countries. 
 
For more information, visit www.corporate.visa.com.