China’s UnionPay overtakes Visa
(18 August 2011 – China) China UnionPay has overtaken Visa as the world’s largest payments card scheme with 29.2 percent of all 8 billion payments in card circulation in 2010 carrying the UnionPay brand, according to Retail Banking Research (RBR).
Visa had 28.6 percent of the payment circulation, MasterCard accounts for 20 percent, American Express just 1.1 percent, private label cards make up 10 percent of the total with the same proportion coming from domestic banks.
Globally, the pre-paid and debit card sectors each grew by more than 10 percent in 2010, while the credit card sector contracted by six percent. Debit now account for 62 percent of all cards, credit for 28 percent, charge 6 percent and pre-paid 3 percent.
Established in 2002, China UnionPay has grown at an extraordinary rate, strongly helped by rules that mean foreign companies are not allowed to issue their own cards denominated in its currency, build networks, or process interbank point-of-sale transactions, instead having to co-brand.
This has led to tension with Visa, which is eager to gain access to the massive Chinese market, prompting the American firm to approach the US government about filing a WTO trade complaint.
Globally, the pre-paid and debit card sectors each grew by more than 10 percent in 2010, while the credit card sector contracted by six percent. Debit now account for 62 percent of all cards, credit for 28 percent, charge 6 percent and pre-paid 3 percent.
Established in 2002, China UnionPay has grown at an extraordinary rate, strongly helped by rules that mean foreign companies are not allowed to issue their own cards denominated in its currency, build networks, or process interbank point-of-sale transactions, instead having to co-brand.
This has led to tension with Visa, which is eager to gain access to the massive Chinese market, prompting the American firm to approach the US government about filing a WTO trade complaint.
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