Consumer Finance

New business models, channels and shopper expectations continue to change retail, redefining industry rules and relationships and disrupting the path to purchase. This content provides strategies for adapting to these shifts and offers a framework to…

Due to intense competition and fragmentation in the foodservice industry, many restaurant operators are focusing on customer retention strategies via loyalty programmes. The surge in delivery apps has facilitated this shift, allowing seamless…

Boosted by fast payment, digital wallets and electronic money orders, electronic payment has been dominating the commercial payment in Asia Pacific and Australasia. With recovery in travel, entertainment and trading after the pandemic, growth of card…

Generation Z, comprising one-fifth of the global population, is poised to wield significant consumer influence. However, their polarized behaviours toward social activism, technology, and spending present challenges for businesses. This report…

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…

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, 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…

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…

In 2023, credit cards in Germany witnessed a nuanced recovery characterised by a notable and consistent increase in transaction volume and value. As the nation emerged from pandemic-induced restrictions, industries such as travel and dining -…

In 2023, charge cards in Germany displayed resilience, adapting to the post-pandemic era. The category witnessed a surge in usage, particularly in the commercial segment, with value and transactions sitting marginally below pre-pandemic levels in…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries in 2024. Global inflation is moderating, although divergence among the key economies remains. Supply chain and commodities markets disruptions remain the key risks for…

In 2023, Germany’s consumer lending landscape was characterised by a complex interplay of economic challenges and consumer behaviour. While the market was recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, it faced headwinds from ongoing geopolitical tensions…

In 2023, Germany’s consumer credit market showed signs of cautious optimism. Despite the lingering effects of the pandemic and geopolitical tensions, such as the ongoing crisis in Ukraine, there was a modest rise in consumer lending. However, German…

Total transactions value growth slowed in Western Europe in 2023, with many consumers’ spending impacted by the still high inflation rates. Paper payments remained in decline, with electronic direct/ACH payments continuing to grow. Card payment…

While consumers in the Middle East and Africa region continue to increase their usage of card payments and the digitalisation of the financial industry also continues to advance, cash still remains important in many countries, especially the African…

Ongoing trends continued to be seen in 2023, with the use of cash declining and the digital transformation of financial cards and payments markets in the region a major theme in Latin America. Be it the Pix instant payments system in Brazil or the…

The use of cash continues to lose out to electronic direct/ACH and card payments in the Asia Pacific region, although paper transactions still remain important in some countries. Digital wallets continue gaining in popularity due to their…

Consumer lending is growing at a healthy pace in India, driven by evolving lifestyle preferences where consumers strive for a higher standard of living and access to modern amenities. The country’s growing economy, rising disposable incomes, and…

In 2023, card lending - driven by increasing credit card adoption in India - remained the dominant category within consumer credit in gross lending terms. The adoption of credit cards further increased during the year, primarily as consumers’…

Embedded finance is the critical factor to improve customer journey and drive transformation for services industries.. With travel recovery and sluggish volume sales of automotives, embedded finance is considered to have the most potential to build…

Pre-paid card transactions witnessed healthy double-digit growth in transaction volumes over 2021-2022. However, in 2023, the category witnessed a decline in volume of transactions as consumers became increasingly inclined to choose alternative…

A government-led financial inclusion initiative enticed a burgeoning population to embrace the formal banking sector, resulting in further uptake of financial cards, in particular, debit cards, in 2023. The Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY)…

A government-led financial inclusion initiative is enticing a burgeoning population to embrace the formal banking sector, which is acting in favour of further driving debit card penetration. The government’s financial inclusion initiative, also known…

Credit cards in India witnessed healthy demand in 2023 as consumers looked to bridge their income gap through smart spending. The adoption of credit cards further increased during the year, primarily as responsibilities in the form of expenditure…

Charge cards in India remained a niche category within financial cards and payments in 2023, largely due to higher eligibility criteria for issuance. Given the higher credit score and minimum salary requirement for a charge card in comparison to…

The global B2B payment market is gaining increasing attention from financial card and electronic direct payment platforms, as more consumer payment value has been converted away from paper. The USD32.7 trillion spent by merchants through paper…

This report provides an in-depth analysis of the potential market strategies for companies in Sub-Saharan Africa amidst the current cost of living crisis. It details how companies can leverage affordability, technology, and values to cater to the…

The Southeast Asian market has evolved to version 2.0, positioning ASEAN as a pivotal component in local and global investors' strategies. With a rising cost of capital amid tightening monetary policies, long-term structural shifts in demographics…

Embedded finance is a critical factor in improving the customer journey and driving transformation. Leading embedded finance partners enable non-financial clients to offer diversified financial products and services, with simplified integration,…

Technological advances in 2024 will continue to reshape consumer behaviour. This annual report explores the top five digital shopper trends that will redefine commerce the most in the year ahead. Some of the trends included in this report’s edition…

In a time of uncertainty, brands must ensure that the value proposition provided by their loyalty schemes is firmly aligned with customer needs, priorities and expectations, continuously refined and adapted to withstand disruption and changing market…

Loans became more expensive for consumers in 2023, as a result of the European Central Bank's interest rate policy, with rates rising in response to high inflation in the EU since the energy crisis broke out in 2022 and the war in Ukraine began. The…

Consumer credit has experienced a significant drop in all areas of gross lending in 2023. In light of the sharp increases in the cost of living since 2022, Austrians have generally been frugal with expenditure. Individuals are focused on meeting…

Following a decade of low borrowing costs, businesses and consumers now face increasing financial pressure due to a surge in interest rates in 2023. High interest rates have far-reaching consequences on economies, businesses and households, impacting…

As in so many cases, perhaps the biggest story for store cards in the US in 2023 has been the twin forces of high inflation and high interest rates. While inflation has crept down over the course of 2023 in the US, the price increases that have…

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…

2023 is likely to go down as the first generally “normal” year of the 2020s. While 2022 saw most companies return to at least some form of hybrid working, the emergence of the Omicron variant early in the year had a significant effect on the overall…

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,…

The biggest news of 2023 has been administrative, with the Federal Reserve fighting inflation and the threat of recession. With inflation well above recent norms in 2022, the Fed spent roughly 18 months in a constant dance of deciding whether to…

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…

Fraud has hit debit cards hard in the US in recent years. Significant increases in card not present fraud have been recorded in the market in 2023, and are a legitimate concern for those in the financial industry. A significant threat to card usage…

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…

Credit cards in the US is set to continue to see robust growth by all measures in 2023. While inflation in the country has generally been at lower levels than in the extreme outlier year of 2022, prices have still grown considerably, and some US…

Driven by a general shift from cash to card payments, which was accelerated by the outbreak of COVID-19, and the continuing travel recovery, credit card transactions saw strong growth in 2023; in both the number of transactions and transition value…

Charge cards as a whole has been performing well in 2023, and it is expected to continue to grow beyond pandemic lows. Consumer spending in 2023 has driven payments across all card types, with the return to travel remaining an important storyline – a…

Driven by a shift from cash to card payments, boosted by the outbreak of COVID-19 and the continuing recovery of travel, charge cards saw solid growth in transaction and value terms. However, growth was at a slower pace compared to credit and debit…

Pre-paid cards in the United Arab Emirates is experiencing a surge in innovation and growth, driven by evolving consumer preferences, technological advances, and the increasing popularity of digital payments. Mobile reloading options, such as bank…

The United Arab Emirates continues its journey towards a cashless society, with the continued adoption of digital payment solutions, contactless cards, and the emergence of supplementary payment platforms or solutions in pre-paid cards that support…

Contactless payments are becoming increasingly popular in the United Arab Emirates, driven by the convenience and safety they offer. Banks are accelerating the adoption of contactless payment technology, embedding NFC (Near Field Communication) chips…

The credit cards category in the United Arab Emirates is set to experience strong growth by all measures in 2023, fuelled by a combination of favourable economic conditions, evolving consumer preferences, and the adoption of new technologies. The…