Payment card

The proliferation of digital channels and the increased cost of carrying cash due to high inflation have boosted the use of debit and personal credit cards (PCCs), the Central Bank of Türkiye has said.

European authorities continue to place great emphasis on combating financial fraud, as highlighted in a joint report by the European Central Bank and the European Banking Authority on this issue. Although victims of financial fraud, particularly in online transactions, are increasing, the absolute numbers remain extremely small relative to the total number of transactions.

Card payments tend to make us spend more money compared to cash payments, according to a new study. This phenomenon is attributed to the physical representation of money in the form of banknotes, which makes us more mindful of our budget when we pay with cash.

The Turkish banking regulator has decreed that the threshold for contactless payments will be raised by 100 percent to 1,500 Turkish Liras as of July 1.

The number of card transactions carried out in Greece grew 20-fold in the period 2014-2022, with their value increasing nine times at the same time.

Cardholders in Greece lost 13.5 million euros in 2023, falling victim to fraud by people who either stole their card or their data. This is a part of the total loss that occurred through plastic money fraud, the amount of which increased from €16.2 million to €23.8 million (an increase of 46.9%), as the remaining €10.3 million was charged to banks and payment providers.

Credit card spending increased by 138 percent on an annual basis in March to hit 992 billion Turkish Liras ($30.4 billion), according to data from the Interbank Card Center (BKM).

The number of credit cards in use in Türkiye rose by 17 percent compared to March of last year to a total of 121.4 million.

Bulgarian Posts, a cornerstone of the country's communication infrastructure, faces criticism for its outdated payment systems, highlighting a stark contrast with the widespread adoption of digital transactions in modern society.

The number of people with unpaid consumer loans and credit card payments declined by 11.6 percent last year from 2022 to 1.32 million, according to data Encazip compiled.

In 2022, nearly 1.5 million people failed to make consumer loans and credit card payments, according to the numbers of the Turkish Banks Association's (TBB) Risk Center.

The value of transactions with plastic money reached 62 billion euros in 2023, recording an increase of 15% compared to 2022, a rate that is expected to be maintained this year with a marginal slowdown, according to estimates by Mastercard, assessing the positive macroeconomic environment and, in particular, the universal mandatory introduction of point of sale devices (POS) in 35 new professio