Consumer Finance

Consumer credit gross lending has experienced further strong growth in 2023, along similar lines to the previous year. The main factor behind this growth has been the improvement in economic conditions as a result of increased community mobility…

As inflation continues to rise, an increasing number of households find themselves in a financially precarious situation at the end of the month or salary payment periods. The impact of inflation bites into monthly budgets, leading to higher expenses…

Since the reopening of borders in the fourth quarter of 2022, there has been a significant increase in the desire of Hong Kong residents to travel abroad, following three years of pandemic-induced restrictions. Throughout 2023, there has been a…

Consumer credit is facing challenges in 2023, due to the uncertainty of the overall economic context. Negative influencing factors include high inflation, geopolitical unrest concerning the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, and, in light of this situation,…

Forbes Middle East's recent list of the top 30 fintech companies for 2023 highlighted a strong presence from Egypt. Fawry secured the top spot, boasting an extensive network of 36 member banks, over 280,000 agents, and a user base exceeding 49…

Increasing interest rates are having an impact on consumer lending in 2023, with growth lower than the previous year. That being said, growth is still positive as the economy fares fairly well, in spite of inflation continuing to rise, though at a…

In the early months of 2023, a challenging macroeconomic climate, coupled with low consumer confidence, high interest rates to curb demand and soaring inflation, as well as political uncertainty, resulted in a marked deceleration in the issuance of…

Historically, when a consumer applied for a bank loan, the commitment was typically honoured until the debt was fully repaid because the process of making a change was costly and time-consuming. In 2020, Chile introduced the Financial Portability Law…

In 2023 the Bank of Canada has tweaked its prime interest rate several times. The impact on the housing market has been a rise in household mortgage debt. Consumers with variable rate mortgages or on the cusp of renewals have been struck especially…

While the Buy Now, Pay Later mechanism is still in its early stages in the country, new companies are emerging with innovative models, such as GOcuotas. Despite being relatively small, GOcuotas is experiencing remarkable growth, boasting an annual…

Charge cards were not issued by banks in Turkey at the end of the review period. Instead, credit cards and debit cards remain the two main types of financial card. Consumers who use credit cards employ them mostly for the “pay later” function, while…

While charge card payments have experienced some growth in popularity over the review period, they remain a relatively minor payment method in the Netherlands, largely due to deeply ingrained cultural factors. Dutch consumers typically gravitate…

The most common type of charge card in the Czech Republic is commercial fleet cards which are offered to top corporate managers. Charge card transactions continued to rise by double-digits in 2023, due to the bounce back in corporate spending, as…

Despite being historically less popular in Taiwan due to limited merchant acceptance compared to VISA, MasterCard, and JCB, American Express (AMEX) is making significant strides in the market. The key to its success lies in the exclusive benefits and…

Charge cards are increasingly viewed as a niche product in Sweden, accounting for just 1% of all transactions in 2023, and therefore recorded further decline in the year. In a development which started before the COVID-19 crisis, fewer and fewer…

Charge cards experience sluggish growth due to rising inflation and a low economic performance, leading companies to optimise expenditures by reducing spending limits. However, charge cards lack digital options that are flourishing in other card…

The post-pandemic return to normal lifestyles is helping to revive the charge card category, with transactions rising alongside the recovery in travel. Nevertheless, charge cards issued by banks continue to be infrequently utilised and the number in…

Charge cards is a niche category in the Norwegian financial cards and payments landscape where debit cards and credit cards dominate. in 2023, debit and credit cards combined accounted for 95% of card payment transactions with little room for charge…

The number of charge cards in circulation in Morocco is rising thanks mainly to population growth, urbanisation and the rising share of the banked population. The convenience of interest-free deferred payments - the core feature of charge cards - is…

Charge cards, which is predominantly represented by American Express, is expected to experience a remarkable resurgence in 2023. In this year charge cards is expected to rebound to around the pre-pandemic levels of usage and card issuance. This…