Visa International reported a 26 percent surge in Middle East regional annual cardholder spending to total $34.7 billion. The number of transactions rose to 150 million per year ending June 2002, representing an increase of 31 percent, while the region’s average spending per card climbed to $5,585 - one of the highest spending habit’s of any region in the world.
More significantly, Visa saw a 25 percent increase in sales volume in shops and other outlets, underlining a major change in people’s behavior and a growing recognition of the security and flexibility of modern payments. Furthermore, for the past four years, retail sales volume in the region has risen by 119 percent.
The propensity to use cards for everyday use is further supported by the rise in debit cards across the region. Debit card numbers increased 25 percent to 5.7 million in the year ending June 2002, with these cards generating a total expenditure value of $32 billion.
Visa-branded cards generate more than $2.3 trillion in annual volume and are accepted at more than 29 million physical locations around the world, including more than 800,000 automated teller machines (ATM). The Visa organization plays a pivotal role in developing innovative payment products and technologies to benefit its 21,000 member financial institutions and their cardholders. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
