Baltic, Banks, Financial Services, Society

The number of payment cards per resident in Latvia is 1.2, in Lithuania – 1.25, in Estonia – 1.35. This index indicates that the number of payment cards per resident in Latvia could grow if residents choose additional services, for example, credit cards, the Citadele bank's board member Santa Purgaile told the press representatives.

She said that credit cards are becoming more popular among the residents of Latvia. Currently, the number of debit cards issued in Latvia is 1.943 million, while the number of credit cards – 248,396.

The banks have issue a total of 1.428 million "MasterCard" payment cards, 870,760 "Visa" payment cards and 74,910 "American Express" cards. Purgaile estimates that the proportion of "MasterCards" could gradually increase, as Swedbank and SEB banka have fully switched to issuing "MasterCards". Citadele, on the other hand, offers all three types of cards. Nevertheless, there is no real difference whether they use "MasterCard" or "Visa", Purgaile said.

The average sum of transactions indicates that payment cards are more often used for smaller purchases. During the first quarter of 2014, the average sum of transactions using payment cards was EUR 37.82, while in 2013, this sum was EUR 41.26, but in 2012 – EUR 42.52.