Consumer Finance

Credit card transactions continue to exhibit triple-digit current value growth in 2023, aligning with the extremely high inflation rate in Turkey. The rising number of credit cards and transactions is primarily driven by the influx of new consumers…

Debit card transactions remained the main driver behind the shift from cash to card payments in 2023. Every bank account holder in Austria owns at least one debit card, which is heavily favoured for payments at the POS, with debit card consumers…

Denmark is mostly a cashless country, and debit cards continue to be the most popular payment method, both in terms of number of transactions and total transaction value, The number of cards is only expected to increase slightly in 2023, as the…

The first news in debit cards is the ongoing growth of their number and transactions – despite the gloomy economic context. This is attributed to the following reasons.

In 2023, debit cards in Germany maintain their upward trajectory, building on the momentum gained in previous years. The waning impact of the pandemic has accelerated the transition from cash to digital payments, particularly debit cards. This shift…

Debit cards continue to dominate the Greek financial cards and payments landscape, showing further growth in 2023. They are growing in terms of the number of cards, volume and value of transactions, and increasingly accounting for smaller, everyday…

The enduring consumer preference for debit cards over credit cards continued throughout 2023, with the former accounting for the more than 10 times the value of the latter in terms of transactions. Such cards are easy to obtain in Italy, as well as…

Debit cards are the most popular types of card payment in Norway and face little threat from credit cards or other types of financial card payments in 2023. Around one-half of all payment cards in Norway are debit cards, generating more than 80% of…

Debit cards is on the rise in 2023, boosted by growing expenditure levels. Despite downward pressure on consumer purchasing power, Portuguese people have continued to increase their expenditure levels in 2023 as a result of rising inflation rates and…

Banks in Spain are changing their business strategy, resulting in a decline in the number of debit cards issued in 2023. Whilst customers previously had access to a free debit card if they had other banking products and services, including mortgages…

Debit cards remain the most popular type of financial card in Sweden in 2023 in terms of the number of cards in circulation, and current value and volume transactions. The popularity of debit cards is attributable to the high share of digital…

Contactless payments, whether using a debit card or a mobile device linked to a debit card, have become an increasingly popular method of payment at physical merchant locations in the United Kingdom. This surge in popularity can be attributed to the…

In 2023, debit cards remains the preferred and most widely used payment method, increasing from the previous year in terms of the number of cards in circulation, as well as the volume and retail value of transactions. However, this growth is set to…

The COVD-19 pandemic hampered the use of cash in Turkey, with consumers also opting to use a debit card over credit cards in 2023. The availability of contactless debit cards encouraged consumers to use their debit cards for small purchases, while…

Although cash transactions continued to play a strong role in Austria, a clear shift from cash to card payments continued in 2023. The outbreak of COVID-19 in Austria further accelerated the change, with consumers appreciating the contactless form of…

In terms of financial cards, Denmark is a saturated market and the number of cards in circulation is not expected to increase significantly across debit, credit, pre-paid or store cards.

Financial cards continues its progress in 2023, however, with mixed results. Global inflation continues to create an uncertain economic climate and an increasing price-sensitivity around sales of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs), leading to…

In 2023, financial cards and payments in Germany had to navigate a complex landscape. On the one hand, there was a slow yet steady increase in transactions, particularly in industries such as travel and dining that rebounded as pandemic restrictions…

The Greek financial card and payments market experienced robust growth in 2022, fuelled by post-pandemic recovery and the impact of inflation. This growth trend persists into 2023, albeit at a slower pace, attributed to the positive economic outlook…

Financial cards and payments performed well in Italy in 2023, both in terms of the number of cards in circulation and the value of transactions. Growth was underpinned by the growing trend towards cashless payments, even for smaller amounts, thanks…

Financial cards and payments in Norway is witnessing a moderate performance in 2023, with flat volume growth and steady growth in card transactions. There has been a steady recovery in transaction spend since 2021, following the heavy declines…

Portuguese consumers continue to shift towards electronic payment instruments (payment cards, electronic direct or ACH transactions), with cards being the most used electronic payment instrument in everyday life. The trend of replacing cash with card…

The Spanish economy has performed better than anticipated in 2023, despite the challenges posed by high energy costs and the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, with consumption continuing to recover to 2019 levels, boosted by the recovery of travel…

The two pandemic years boosted the use of financial cards in Sweden. While the use of cash in the country was already exceptionally low by global standards at the start of the review period, its role diminished further during the pandemic due to…

In 2023, the Netherlands is experiencing its first full year without COVID-19 restrictions, leading to significant shifts in the payments landscape. For offline payments, this has resulted in a notable increase in card payments and proximity mobile…

In 2023, the UK’s economy has continued to be characterised by a high inflation rate and a rising cost of living. And, while in 2022 this situation was mainly exacerbated by the high cost of energy, in 2023 this cost has gradually started decreasing,…

A significant shift is underway in the realm of Dutch public transport, as the familiar OV chipkaart is being gradually phased out and replaced with a more versatile system known as OVpay. Since the start of 2023, travellers on public transport have…

Closed loop pre-paid card transactions in Austria are essentially merchant-issued gift cards, and demand for these continued to increase in 2023. In a time of persistently high inflation with increased prices of essentials such as food and petrol,…

While there is a significant number of pre-paid cards in Denmark, the spend is not significant. That being said, there is expected to be a modest increase in value spend in 2023, largely driven by rising inflation. With debit cards having significant…

The growth seen in pre-paid cards in 2023 is being supported by the popularity of closed loop pre-paid cards allocated for gifts. The number of such cards has increased in recent years, with the era of the pandemic seeing consumers allocate a part of…

In 2023, pre-paid cards in Germany displayed a remarkable ability to adapt to post-pandemic changes. This was in contrast to 2022, when pre-paid cards witnessed a decline in transactions and value due to extraordinary circumstances, such as the…

In 2023, open-loop pre-paid cards have seen a mild increase in the number of cards, transaction volume, and transaction value. This uptick is part of the general momentum in card transactions driven by the proliferation of digital wallets,…

Pre-paid cards continued to be one of the most popular types of financial card in Italy, particularly in the case of young adults or those without a bank account. However, as with other financial cards, the rise of contactless payments expanded usage…

Although they are still a popular option in Norway, the volume of pre-paid cards has dropped significantly since the pandemic. Both open loop and closed loop pre-paid cards continue to decline in 2023, albeit at a slower rate than previous years.…

Boosted by the recovery of transportation cards, which had suffered severely during the COVID-19 pandemic, closed loop cards is seeing double-digit growth in 2023. Otlis, Lisbon’s transportation system cards, leads in terms of number of cards in…

Closed loop pre-paid cards remain dominant in Spain, accounting for around four-fifths of transactions by value. Indeed, closed loop pre-paid cards issued by the public transportation systems in Madrid and Bilbao (Consorcio Transporte Madrid and…

Pre-paid cards remain relatively strong in terms of the number of cards, but hold a very marginal share of all card payment transactions in 2023. Bank account penetration is almost universal in Sweden, with the result that pre-paid cards are…

A significant shift is underway in the realm of Dutch public transport, as the familiar OV chipkaart is being gradually phased out and replaced with a more versatile system known as OVpay. Since the start of 2023, travellers on public transport have…

Pre-paid cards is set to see a solid performance in 2023, while other card payment methods, such as charge cards and store cards, are set to decrease significantly, and others are set to see slower growth, such as debit cards. One of the factors…

Turkey is witnessing dynamic growth in social media and gaming expenditure. While consumers above the age of 18 and those in the workforce have the option to obtain credit or debit cards to access their wages, a different consumer profile is emerging…

Store cards remained a niche in Austria in 2023, continuing a downward trend with a double-digit decline in transaction values despite the continuing shift to card payments. Most consumers in Austria are unfamiliar with store cards, and the usage of…

Store cards continue to lose popularity in Denmark, with the number of cards in circulation expected to fall slightly, with total transaction value falling significant. This is in spite of rising inflation. Store cards have not kept up with…

From many years, there has been a decline in the number of store cards in France, along with a lowering of the average spend. The economic context and inflationary pressures are notable factors here, along with the fact that French consumers…

In 2023, store cards in Germany faced stagnant development. Despite a brief resurgence in 2021 and 2022, the category has struggled to return to pre-pandemic levels. The decline is attributed to the growing consumer preference for alternative loyalty…

The presence of store cards remained negligible in Greece during 2022. No major interest in launching products in this category of the financial cards has been shown by any of the country’s financial cards issuers. In particular, the unfavourable…

Store cards continued to register a negative performance in 2023, in terms of both the number of cards in circulation and the value of transactions, continuing the trend established during the review period. This was due to strong competition from…

While Norway is one of the most advanced societies in the world regarding card payments, the digitalisation trend has had little impact on store cards. As a result, store cards have become increasingly marginalised in Norway and represent less than…

With the economy reopened post pandemic and consumers returning to store-based outlets, store cards is again enjoying positive growth. In 2023, the category’s growth is boosted by rising consumers’ expenditure levels and high inflation rates.…

Store cards account for a relatively small share of card payment transactions in Spain compared to credit, charge and particularly debit cards, as many local consumers are not well informed about the rewards and credit possibilities that store cards…

Store cards are registering further decline in terms of both the number and value of transactions in 2023 as they are perceived to be old-fashioned, plus other financial card types and instruments offer greater flexibility. In contrast to credit…