Banking & Finance Credit and debit card use rises steeply in Turkey By William Sellars January 24, 2025, 7:26 AM Unsplash+/Jordan González Credit and debit transactions for clothing and accessories in Turkey accounted for more than TL1 trillion Credit and debit use up 86% 332m cards in Turkey Unserviced debt rising Cash could be dethroned as king in Turkey as consumers increasingly turn to plastic when paying for goods and services. But the rise in card usage also comes at a cost, as more Turks fall behind in servicing their debt. Credit and debit card spending reached a total of TL14.87 trillion ($420 billion) in 2024, an 86 percent increase on the previous year, according to a report by the Turkish Central Bank. There were more than 2.65 billion card transactions in the 11 months to November last year, up from the 2023 total of 2.54 billion. Transactions at malls and supermarkets dominated card spending, accounting for TL2.6 trillion ($72 billion). Outlays for clothing and accessories, and for foodstuffs both totalled more than TL1 trillion ($28 billion). The number of cards in the country also increased. As of November, there were just under 129 million credit cards and a further 193 million debit cards in circulation in Turkey, a country with a population of 86 million. An additional 11 million credit and 4.9 million debit cards were issued in 2024. One reason for the expanding use of cards in transactions is the growing number of people, especially younger Turks, who are becoming part of the formal economy, banking and finance expert Kerim Rota told AGBI. “With digitalisation, the rate at which they are entering into the finance system has increased greatly, though it is still fairly low when compared to international standards,” he said. Turkey’s rate of 1.5 credit cards per person is still below the US, where in 2023 there were 3.3 cards per person, according to research company ReportLinker. The number of credit cards globally is forecast to reach 3.2 billion units by 2028, up from 2.9 billion in 2023, at an average annual growth rate of 1.6 percent. Another factor driving the growth in Turkish card usage has been the fall in purchasing power, Rota said: “Over the past five to six years the population has become more addicted to consumer loans, with credit card use emerging.” Turkey faces $3bn payout for pensioners and wage support Turkey hit with tax on Syrian peace dividend Turkey’s exports to US surge but tariffs are a threat The rate of individuals who are struggling to pay off debts has also increased, according to the Risk Centre of the Turkish Banks Association. Cases subject to legal recourse resulting from unpaid credit and credit card debts rose to 1.66 million at year end 2024, up from 1.19 million 12 months before. There was an increase in debts not being serviced last year and this trend is set to continue in 2025 and 2026, Rota said. Nonetheless, he does not believe the level of non-performing loans is a major issue as yet, as the debt value to GDP remains low: “I do not see a major problem based on the fact that household borrowing in Turkey in general is not that high.”