Work Force 2008

67 million cards in the pockets of Italians

by admin on 13/11/08 at 5:45 am

Abi issued a press release that shows the picture in the Italian credit card, cash, revolving and various kinds in our country.

The Italians and the cards
A growing number of “plastic cards” in the pockets of Italians and growing their use to meet the daily expenses of families but also for businesses. Today, in fact, there are 29 million ATM (+5% compared to 2006), 30 million credit cards (+17%), 3.3 million prepaid (+29%) and 4.3 million revolving cards (+21%). The cards “active”, that have made at least one transaction in 2007, are 51 million equal to 76% of cards in circulation: 86% of ATM cards, 70% for credit cards, 64% of revolving and 58% of prepaid.
If the majority of ATM cards (96% of those in circulation) and credit cards (93%) are found in the pockets of families, more and more companies “discover” the advantages of prepaid cards that made available to employees, prove useful and flexible. In 2007, more than 600 thousand pre-paid (21%) were used as company cards. Becomes increasingly frequent, and even make purchases with the cards by phone and on-line: those who have done “shopping” through these channels are about 6 million of 25% of active credit cards and 25% of prepaid.

The data is in contradiction with the economic evolution.
Although there is a severe crisis using POS is increasing.
How to explain?
In recent years the cost of transactions through credit cards is almost zero for the customer, many companies have turned the payment of salaries of employees on C / C which is a “load” of money that you can use with your membership card compatibility.
Also coming is a new generation, accustomed to the use of electronic devices.
Finally, many state and private operations, which previously required the operator to stop, have been mediated automated computer systems.
The totality of these circumstances brings the entire monetary system to move increasingly in banks.

For them the gain is high, but consider the convenience that offers a / c and an electronic card, without having to carry cash, is a price to pay for some ’safety.
But as we are still so sure?
When the delinquency will understand that the robberies could be done only online, we will have billions of hackers ready to our savings?

Payments
In Italy, I pay with the cards is a practice increasingly popular because they are also more than 900 thousand stores that accept these payment instruments for a total of 1.3 million total installed POS (+4%). More than 40 million cards “strip” in 2007 for a total of 104 billion Euros and 1.2 billion the number of payments at POS. Of these, 70% were done with ATM (815 million transactions for a total of 58.6 million Euros) and the remaining 30% with credit cards (420 million transactions for a total of 45.5 million euro). In a year, each paper has made an average of 27 payments and, in particular, the teller was “strip” 29 times while the credit cards 23. The average ticket was 88 euro; the credit card was used for transactions with a value of medium-high (106 Euros) while the ATM for payments lowers (73 Euros).
Levies and other transactions from ATMs
the widespread and growing use of cards in Italy is also due to the fact that now can be used virtually anywhere, at ATMs of banks at every street corner. The ATM is always more (over 41 thousand, +5% over the previous year) and become increasingly sophisticated. 28% of ATMs, it is Web based i.e. based on the same protocols of the Internet banking services online (+30%), 10% are able to receive payments of cash and checks (+48%) and about 41 % has a kit for preventing fraud cloning cards (+17%).

As written in the communiqué a uniform system, allowed cards to be accepted almost everywhere and have facilitated the ease, comfort and dissemination of this method of payment.
But this round of money “virtual / real” how much?

In 2007, 30 million cards equal to 58% of those active ATM have been used at least once. Of these, 80% are Bancomat (22.7 million) and prepaid cards (0.9 million). During the same period, the ATMs of the banks were about 800 million transactions: 692.5 thousand charges, telephone charges 50 thousand, 38 thousand operations advance cash payments 9 thousand and 2.7 thousand recharges of prepaid cards. Each card has ATM 31 operations per year and more than two transactions per month.
The total amount of transactions from ATMs has exceeded 112 billion Euros: levies accounted for 98%, while payments are still marginal (0.5%). The average was 158 Euros for levies, 179 Euros for recharging prepaid cards and 65 bills and other payments.
The “war on cash”
Despite the spread and increasing use of cards, on the Italy side that is still behind the rest of Europe. To bridge this gap and encourage greater use of these means of payment than cash, and Visa have conducted a campaign of communication and information, the lot in recent weeks in newspapers and television stations and with posters, brochures and a dedicated website. The campaign, which ends in the spring, focuses on three major strengths of the cards: security, comfort and better management of household budgets.

Very high numbers behind which there is a huge business for banks and a great convenience to the customers.
But the war on cash it seems to me something a little part.
To encourage even greater use was even made an advertisement that appears in these days in TV.
We are not exaggerating?