3.19.2008 - 10:52am ET

(CSRwire) SAN FRANCISCO, March 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Among the many people on hand today at the New York Stock Exchange to witness Visa Inc.'s (NYSE: V) first day of trading were 30 students from Kappa V Middle School in Brooklyn. The company brought the students to the exchange floor for the opening bell and conducted its first public trade on behalf of Teach For America, the national corps of top college graduates who commit two years to teach in rural and urban public schools, including Kappa V.

"Visa has been working for more than a decade to promote financial literacy -- particularly with students and young adults," said Joseph W. Saunders, Chairman and CEO, Visa Inc. "These children -- like millions more across the U.S. and around the world -- are at an age when learning about money management is vitally important. Today's milestone is a great opportunity to bring young people into one of the world's financial hubs and show them the importance of good money management."

Saunders personally conducted the first trade of Visa Inc.'s public stock by buying 1,000 shares in the name of Teach For America, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending educational inequity in our country. The organization will receive the shares as a donation. Visa also plans to conduct an in-depth session at Kappa V on building good money management skills led by Visa's director of financial education. The in-person session will be based on resources available through Visa's "Practical Money Skills for Life" and "What's My Score?" financial literacy programs, which are available at no cost to teachers and consumers every day around the globe.

"The children of Kappa V are thrilled to be a part of Visa's first day of trading," said Dellie Edwards, the Interim Acting Principal of Kappa V. "The students at our school sincerely appreciate Visa's commitment to helping young people understand how to handle their finances."

Visa's Practical Money Skills for Life (www.practicalmoneyskills.com) is a free, award-winning, teacher-tested and teacher-approved financial education program that is available in English, Spanish and Chinese.

More information about the Teach For America program is available at www.teachforamerica.org.

About Visa: Visa Inc. 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 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.

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