Walter Forbes, then aged 30, set up Comp-U-Card (CUC) in 1973 with Kirk Shelton. The company sold membership cards that allowed customers to buy goods and services from selected firms at discounted rates. During the 1980s and early 1990s the firm grew, attracting 30 million customers. It also started buying other companies, culminating in a 1997 merger with HFS Incorporated, which owned various franchises and hotel chains. The newly merged firm was renamed Cendant in 1997.

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