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The number of card payments in Albania reached more than 5.8 million during 2020, the highest level ever recorded.
The number of card payments in Albania reached more than 5.8 million during 2020, the highest level ever recorded. Data from the Bank of Albania show that payments at electronic points of sale have marked a significant increase of 17% compared to a year ago.
Following the outbreak of the pandemic, consumers began to use more cards in payments for the purchase of goods and services, mainly due to the perception that contact with cash could pose an increased risk of spreading the coronavirus causing COVID-19. This factor seems to have had a positive impact on the tendency of Albanians to use more electronic payments. This trend seems to be indirectly confirmed by a smaller number of cash withdrawals at ATMs to 16.1 million, from 16.5 million a year earlier.
However, the effect of the pandemic was also felt in the performance of electronic payments, especially related to the significant decline in incoming tourism. As a value, card payments at POS points of Albanian commercial banks fell slightly last year to ALL 25.5 billion, about 2.7% less compared to 2019. According to experts, the drastic reduction in the number of foreign visitors, who have a degree of The high use of bank card payments seems to have been the main factor behind this slight decline. A drastic reduction in the travel of Albanians abroad has had a similar effect, resulting in more card payments for ticket or hotel bookings. Despite the expected negative effect from the tourism factor, the increase in the number of card payments proves that in general the pandemic has positively affected the use of electronic payments by Albanians.
Comparative studies of Visa and Master Card have shown that Albania is one of the markets with the lowest use of non-cash card payments. Card payments at electronic points of sale account for only 10% of the total volume of card transactions, ranking Albania as one of the countries with the lowest level of this indicator in Europe.
Banks have significantly increased the number of electronic sales terminals (POS) in recent years, despite the relatively low usage and resistance of traders, partly motivated by informality. At the end of 2020, the number of POS terminals reached more than 12,100, an increase of 8.7% compared to a year earlier.
At the end of 2020, Albanians had 1.26 million active bank cards in use, the vast majority of debit cards linked to current accounts. The number of cards increased by 4.8% compared to a year ago./Monitor.al
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