According to data released by Turkeys Interbank Card Center (BKM), 19 million out of the existing 54 million credit cards in the country have been used for online shopping in 2012. Also, the number of credit cards issued by banks has risen by 6 percent during the year, while the number of debit cards issued has increased by 11 percent, amounting to 91 million.
Results also unveil that 29 percent of all credit card payments have been recorded as grocery shopping, 12 percent for clothing transactions and 11 percent for gasoline purchases. Payments made for food have accounted for 9 percent among all shopping transactions. The average amount spent per transaction via credit card was under USD 56.
The survey points out that Turkey continued its sustainable growth in credit card users in 2012 while the number of point of sale machines, which totals 2.1 million throughout the country, also contributed to this growth by facilitating card use. The total value of shopping by credit card was USD 186.5 billion, with an increase of 25 percent compared to the previous year. The total figure for debit card shoppers was USD 8.9 billion, which experienced a rise of 36 percent within the past year. The average value of expenditures by people using both debit and credit cards was USD 69.60.
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