less profitable to issue and thus many issuers scaled back advertising and promoting their use while others stopped selling them altogether. Traveller's cheques are no longer widely accepted and cannot easily be cashed, even at the banks that issued them. The alternatives to traveller's cheques are generally cheaper and more flexible. Travel money cards, for instance, provide features similar to traveller's cheques but offer greater ease and flexibility. Terminology Legally, the parties to traveller's cheque transactions are as follows. The organization that produces a traveller's cheque is the obligor or issuer. The bank or other place that sells it is the agent of the issuer. The natural person who buys the cheque is the purchaser. The entity to whom the purchaser hands the cheque in payment for goods or services is the payee or merchant. For purposes of clearance, the obligor is both maker and drawee. History Traveller's cheques were first issued on 1 January 1772 by the London Credit Exchange Company for use in 90 European cities, and in 1874, Thomas Cook was issuing "circular notes" that operated in the manner of traveller's cheques. American Express developed a large-scale international traveller's cheque system in 1891, to supersede the traditional letters of credit. It is still the largest issuer of traveller's cheques today by volume. American Express's introduction of traveller's cheques is traditionally attributed to employee Marcellus Flemming Berry, after company president J. C. Fargo had problems in smaller European cities obtaining funds with a letter of credit. Between the 1850s and the 1990s, traveller's cheques became one of the main ways that people took money on vacation for use in foreign countries without the risks associated with carrying large amounts of cash. Several brands of traveller's cheques have been marketed; the most familiar of those were Thomas Cook Group, Bank of America and American Express. Declining use The convenience and wider acceptance of such alternatives as credit and debit cards and the wider availability of ATMs has led to a significant decline in the use of traveller's cheques since the 1990s. In addition, security concerns of retailers has led to many businesses ceasing to accept them, in turn making them less attractive to travellers. This has led to complaints about the difficulty that holders have in using them. In much of Europe and Asia, traveller's cheques are no longer widely accepted and cannot be easily cashed, even at the