10 Years Later, Credit Cards Are Mainstream

[2tallbill]

10 Years Later, Credit Cards Are Mainstream

Russians now hold 7,600 percent more Visa cards than they did 10 years ago, a senior Visa executive said Tuesday, a number that shows an explosive growth of the market.

Visa had issued 70 million cards in Russia as of late June, compared with 924,000 cards as of June 2000, said Steven Parker, Visa's chief executive for Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States and southeastern Europe.

He said the behavior of Russia's consumers had changed significantly over the past decade, with more people using plastic cards for everyday payments.

“In the early 2000s, the use of Visa cards was more of an exception than an everyday means of paying for goods and services. That has changed today,” Parker said at a news conference, as Visa celebrated its 10th anniversary in Russia.

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http://www.themoscowtimes.com/business/article/10-years-later-credit-cards-are-mainstream/419875.html