Payment cards in circulation worldwide 2028

The number of payment cards in circulation worldwide grew by nearly one billion between 2022 and 2023, and is forecast to increase further. The source adds that some of the largest brands on cards issued across the world include UnionPay, Visa, and MasterCard. Roughly 188 billion purchase transactions were made using Visa in 2020 — an increase of 1.3 percent. The figures provided concern credit, debit, and prepaid cards that are issued either as general purpose or via private label.

Which card scheme is the biggest?

In terms of individual card schemes, China's UnionPay is expected to have more cards in circulation than either Visa or Mastercard by 2027. UnionPay is especially prevalent in the Asia-Pacific. Domestic card schemes — which take up a significant market share in Europe — are also projected to increase between 2022 and 2027. Note also that private label cards, which include retail branded cards or fuel cards, have a similar market size to UnionPay. By 2017, private label issued cards are expected to make up roughly 30 percent of total cards in circulation. When looking at the largest cards schemes based on the global number of transactions processed, Visa's market share in 2022 was over 57 percent against 10 percent for UnionPay.

Cards to face increasing competition from alternative payments

Payment cards are expected to remain the biggest digital payment method in both an offline and online environment. Alternative payment methods are expected to reach a higher CAGR than transactions with cards, however. This CAGR growth between 2022 and 2027 is highest for e-commerce: The transaction value of alternative payments in online shopping is to increase with a CAGR of 11.7 percent between 2022 and 2027. This compared to 9.7 percent for card not present transactions. Alternative payment methods — or APMs, as the source calls them — can be any form of noncash payment that does not involve a credit or debit card. This can include mobile wallets but also buy now, pay later, or payments performed with cryptocurrency or stablecoins.