UnionPay debit cards outshine competition

UnionPay debit cards have become the most popular global payment method, generating more transactions than MasterCard and Visa according to The Nilsen Report.

In 2014 there was a 14.2 per cent increase in overall transactions, with brands such as American Express, MasterCard, UnionPay, and Visa generating 195.56 billion payments. The increase in transactions has also increased the volume for goods and services. Last year goods and services grew by 18.3 per cent, producing $2.832 trillion.

UnionPay’s growth in the debit card market is continuing to excel, with the Nilsen Report revealing that they had the highest percentage increase for a debit card, based on purchase volume. Union Pay’s debit and credit card transactions also grew by 52.3 per cent.

UnionPay is attempting to match, and even better its competitors in terms of year-on-year growth. Last year UnionPay’s transactions grew to 6.78 billion, exceeding MasterCard’s 6.17 billion. Visa however, still comes out on top with transactions, increasing to 10.40 billion transactions.

UnionPay still has a long way to go before they can be known as the top debit card company, a title which this year belongs to Visa. Visa debit cards topped the list for the most purchase transactions with a share of 36.79 per cent, followed by Visa credit cards with 20.95 per cent. Union Pay trailed behind Visa and MasterCard, with their debit cards accounting for 5.45 per cent, and their credit cards achieving 4.65 per cent.

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