Record rise in card usage

Data for December 2025 revealed that cards have now become an inseparable part of life in individual spending. The total number of credit cards, debit cards, and prepaid cards reached 460.6 million by the end of the year. While the number of credit cards grew by 10 percent compared to the same month last year to reach 142.1 million, this rate for debit cards reached 209 million with an 8 percent increase. Prepaid cards, on the other hand, decreased by 2 percent to 109.5 million.

The total amount of payments made with cards in December rose remarkably. A total of 2 trillion 511.1 billion liras in transactions were carried out, and this figure points to a 48 percent increase compared to December of last year. Credit cards accounted for the majority of this total, recording 2 trillion 143.6 billion liras in spending. While the amount paid with debit cards reached 359.7 billion, prepaid cards remained at the 7.8 billion lira level.

While payments made with credit cards increased by 50 percent, this rate reached 55 percent for debit cards. There was a significant decline in prepaid cards, and the payment volume decreased by 76 percent compared to the same period last year.

BIG LEAP IN CONTACTLESS TRANSACTIONS

The total number of payments made with cards in December showed an 11 percent increase, rising to 1.8 billion. Of these payments, 1 billion 44.5 million were made via credit cards, 716.6 million via debit cards, and 34.5 million via prepaid cards. While the growth in the number of cards was recorded at 13 percent for credit cards and 27 percent for debit cards, a 74 percent drop was observed in transactions made with prepaid cards.

Card payments made over the internet also reached a significant volume. Increasing by 46 percent within a year, internet card payments were recorded at 760.4 billion liras in total. This figure accounted for a 31 percent share of all card payments. Furthermore, the number of internet payments increased by 3 percent to reach 250.4 million, making up 14 percent of all card transactions.

Citizens are also increasingly preferring the contactless payment method in stores. In December, the number of contactless card payments increased by 12 percent to 1 billion 190.9 million. Contactless transactions corresponded to a total of 768.5 billion liras in spending, representing a 52 percent climb compared to the same month last year. It was determined that four out of every five card payments in stores were made contactlessly.

News Source: 12punto