Romanians pay by credit card only once every two months

The 2.5 million credit cards in circulation on the Romanian market were used only 1.5 times on average in the second quarter of the year, according to data from the NBR (National Bank of Romania). The number of credit card payment transactions fell to 3.95 million in the second quarter, from 4.2 million in the first three months of the year. The overall value of payments was 623 million RON (170 million euros), despite a rise in the number of cards, from 2.21 million in March, to 2.5 million in June. In the first quarter of the year, the average number of transactions concluded via credit cards stood at 1.9. Traditionally, Romanians use their card more to withdraw cash than to make payments. In fact, NBR statistics reveal that withdrawals from ATMs were six times higher than credit card payments. Unlike debit cards, which have been widely distributed for companies to make salary payments, credit cards are designed to be used almost exclusively for payments to merchants.