Credit card transactions abroad surge

Credit card transactions by Bangladeshi nationals travelling or living abroad rose significantly to hit Tk 5,386 million in October, up 23.29 percent from the month prior, according to data of Bangladesh Bank.

And including foreign transactions, the overall value of credit card payments increased by 15.43 percent to Tk 25,964 million in October compared to the previous month, the data shows.

Md Mahiul Islam, head of retail banking at BRAC Bank, said foreign credit card transactions have increased as a higher number of Bangladeshis are travelling abroad ahead of the year-end.

Besides, spending through credit cards increased as people are not able to purchase US dollars as per their need from banks due to limitations stemming from the foreign exchange crisis.

"So, most people are trying to make transactions through credit cards," he added.

The central bank data also shows that local transactions using credit cards issued in other countries also increased to Tk 1,993 million in October from Tk 1,904 million in September.

In an analysis of the expenditure behaviour of credit cardholders, it was found they mostly use credit cards in departmental stores.

In October, about 50.73 percent of all credit card transactions took place in departmental stores.

Meanwhile, credit card spending in retail outlets was 12.04 percent while utility bill payments accounted for 9.02 percent, cash withdrawals 8.01 percent, pharmaceuticals 5.48 percent and clothing 5.12 percent.

As per Bangladesh Bank data, 73.07 percent of the total credit card transactions took place using VISA cards while about 16.89 percent were made using Mastercard payment services.

Spending through AMEX cards stood at 9.79 percent in October while the remaining transactions took place using the payment service platform of other brands, the central bank data showed.