CEO Dennis Alter is a bad manager, bad person, terrible example to his family, community, and guys like this are ruining our country. Advanta is his very own perfected scam. Ok People listen up because this will save you thousands of dollars. Advanta works like this;

When you start a company you file with the state. Advanta takes that info and if you have good credit they offer you huge lines and low rates. BUT DON'T BE FOOLED BY ADVANTA. They will send you checks offering rates like 3.99% good for 2 years. But the second you use it they hammer you by reversing the deal, keeping your balance transfer fee of $1, 000 and jacking your rate to 35+%!! They also raise your minimum payment to 4% of what you owe. Trust me, these are huge payments and at 37% the balance never goes down. I was a loyal customer for 10+ years. I was never late and I was well under the limit. I was also never notified.

So if you ask yourself what kind of a sick person created this corrupt loan sharking operation? Well his name is Dennis Alter. He's the founder and CEO and he lulls you into trusting because you think he's a great guy who 'gets' small business. He writes papers cheering on small business. He does interviews with professors from Wharton and politicians from Delaware (where there are no limits on interest rates). He collects art and donates paintings. He gives lots of money to crooked politicians in all the right places. He builds buildings at his alma matter. In other words, he is just like any other corrupt CEO.

But what makes him really disturbing is that evidently he thinks he's a good person. Most corrupt CEO's know what they are. Dennis Alter doesn't.

I have to pay Advanta off because I must have good credit. I have dreamed up every way possible to not pay these people after what they did to me. But they hold my credit hostage so I just have to pay this and chalk it up to one more company that earned my trust and took advantage of me.

Dennis Alter is a very sick old man.

I have just opened my statement today and almost fainted. My interest rate went up from 20% to 37%!!! I have always paid on time, and have never gone over my limit. I called and the person on the phone could not give me any particular reason for the hike. I suggest anyone in the same circumstance call and complain to Advanta. I cancelled my card with them even though it may turn against me on my credit score.

I received my first Advanta credit card just short of a year ago with a very reasonable interest rate of 7.99%. After only FIVE months they raised my interest rate to 29.00% - I called them and they said they had reviewed my credit history and therefore increased the rate. My history had not changed much since they issued the initial rate. I paid off this balance and close my account.

This place needs to be reported to the Banking Commission...they raised their rates seven-fold, they contract call centers with illiterates to contact customers, and they are crooks.

I opened my Advanta small business credit card account in January and after nine months of regular, on-time payments, my interest rate was just raised from 7.99% to 25.8%. When I called and asked why, they said there were no late payments, but the rate increase was based on "a complicated formula of a variety of risk factors including credit history, other credit card payments, mortgages, car loans, etc., and that I was a high risk". They refused to tell me specifically what caused me to be "high risk".

I immediately checked my credit score, which is 777 - rated as "great" and only a 2% risk. We have no car loans, and have paid the mortgage off in full.
I suspect that this is a standard ploy of Advanta's, offering a low "come on" rate and then raising it, and has nothing to do with credit ratings.

According to several consumer credit card websites, Advanta is very popular... which I suspect will change if they continue this business practice. Too bad, because I actually liked the company, and I tend to be a loyal consumer.