Western Europe

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 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.

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…

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…

In the Netherlands, credit card usage is on the rise, despite starting from a relatively small base. The key catalyst for this growth in 2023 is the resurgence of outbound travel. While travel experienced rapid growth in 2022, 2023 marked a further…

After the pandemic, there has been much pent-up demand for activities which were restricted, including going out and travelling abroad. Also, many Swedes managed to make significant savings during COVID-19 and have been able to spend more…

While the number of credit cards in 2023 is well below the peak seen pre-pandemic in 2019, credit card transaction are witnessing record levels in 2023. Credit card transaction surged in 2022, fuelled by the return to offline retailers and a return…

In 2023, credit cards are experiencing growth in terms of the number of cards, volume, and value of transactions. After a prolonged period of recovery from the Greek financial crisis of the previous decade, credit cards have found a stable position…

Consumer credit is facing a number of challenges in France, to the extent the French Association of Financial Companies is reported to have called credit in 2023 a “serious cold snap”. As such, credit difficulties also affect the performance of…

While the number of cards in circulation is expected to remain stable, with only a marginal increase, there is expected to be a double-digit increase in total transaction values. This is largely explained by inflation, particularly as the spend on…

In 2023, consumer lending has witnessed a surge in current value growth, despite soaring inflation rates that have caused substantial economic challenges for consumers. Unpredictable fluctuations in the cost of living and foreign exchange rates have…

In comparison with Eurozone countries, the UK economy has continued to be impacted by high inflation and the soaring cost of living in 2023. While rising electricity and gas prices drove inflation in 2022, they have been gradually decreasing in 2023,…

The consumer lending sector in the Netherlands is currently witnessing a significant slowdown in growth, particularly in gross lending for the year 2023. This deceleration can be attributed to increasingly stringent lending criteria. Policymakers are…

Gross lending in Sweden registered positive, yet slower growth in 2022, as the uncertain economic environment, exacerbated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, led to a decline in consumer confidence. In August 2022, the annual inflation rate soared…

The year 2023 was another prosperous year for consumer lending in Norway although growth was lower than previous years. The exceptionally high levels of consumer lending seen in 2021 and 2022 were boosted by the shift back to normal lifestyles…

Consumer lending in Italy maintained positive, albeit modest growth in current value terms in 2023, as ongoing economic uncertainty led many Italians to retain a cautious attitude towards borrowing. Factors such as high inflation rates, increasing…

Consumer lending is facing challenges in 2023, arising from the current socioeconomic environment. Indeed, as society began to recover from the impacts of the pandemic era, new factors came to play, from soaring global interest rates to the ongoing…

There is expected to be moderate growth in consumer credit gross lending in 2023, though growth will be significantly lower than the previous year. In terms of housing/mortgages, gross lending is expected to fall. A second year of rising interest…

The year 2023 witnessed a decline in the number of consumers obtaining personal consumer credit. As Inflation and the cost of living remained high, consumers relied on cash withdrawals from credit cards when they needed small sums of money. This…

Numerous consumers have increased their reliance on credit to enable them to afford higher retail prices in 2023, as the UK economy has continued to be impacted by high inflation and the rising cost of living. As a result, card lending is set to…

Lending institutions in the Netherlands are adapting their lending norms to accommodate inflation and the increasing cost of living. These updated lending norms predominantly affect consumer credit. By incorporating rising prices into their…

Consumer credit suffered during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, when economic uncertainty saw the postponement of larger purchases. While gross lending surpassed pre-pandemic levels in 2022, consumers remained cautious, amid much uncertainty…

Consumer credit is enjoying a more prosperous year in 2023 than was expected, as the Norwegian economy remains resilient in the face of high inflation. The rate of inflation has reduced slightly in 2023, but it is still much higher than the 2%…

Consumer credit registered positive, albeit modest growth in terms of gross lending and outstanding balance values in Italy in 2023, as ongoing economic uncertainty led many consumers to retain a conservative approach towards borrowing. While the…

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,…

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…

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…

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 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…

During the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020-2021, commercial charge cards experienced a significant downturn in sales. The lockdowns, decline in tourism (a key driver of the Greek economy), general reduction in business activities, and restrictions on…

Charge cards in 2023 is benefitting from the revival of meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE) and business tourism, which experienced a significant slump during the era of the pandemic, and which has taken some time to bounce back…

Even though consumers have relied more on credit to afford higher retail prices in 2023, due to the economic situation in the country, store cards have continued to decrease in popularity, with declines expected in terms of cards in circulation, and…

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…

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,…

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…

In 2022, there was double-digit growth in terms of credit card spending for both personal and commercial credit cards. High inflation and the rising cost of living, which have also been affecting Britons in 2023, were amongst the main causes. In…

Charge cards is expected to continue to see double-digit declines in 2023 in terms of cards in circulation, and volume and value transactions. Historically, charge cards were primarily associated with business use, as the majority of transactions,…

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…

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.…

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…

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…

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…

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…

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 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…

The buy now, pay later (BNPL) trend has taken hold in Spain, particularly among younger consumers, and is rapidly gaining share in Spain. Consumers choose BNPL for a variety of reasons, including the lower APR (in most cases 0%, as opposed to 18% for…

After a robust rise in 2022, credit cards continues to enjoy positive growth in 2023, boosted by local consumers’ increasing expenditure and higher levels of penetration. However, and in contrast to 2022, in 2023 credit cards is seeing slower growth…

The costs of households have continued to rise across the board in 2023 due to the change in tone of the monetary policy of the European Central Bank, which increased interest rates four times during 2022 and 2023, resulting in rising interest rates…

Consumer lending in Portugal is expanding in 2023 amid rising interest rates and decline in households’ disposable incomes. Demand for mortgages is slowing down with card lending posting the most dynamic growth. BNPL, although representing a small…