Card Transactions on the Rise in Greece

Greece is witnessing a steady transformation in consumer habits, with card payments now firmly embedded in everyday life—even for low-value purchases. According to recent data released by the Bank of Greece, 2024 marked another record-breaking year for electronic transactions.

Surge in Card Use

The total number of payment card transactions in 2024 rose by 14%, reaching 2.511 billion, compared to 2.2 billion in 2023. In terms of value, transactions increased by 9%, totaling €112 billion, up from €102 billion the previous year.

Debit cards continue to dominate, accounting for 93% of all card transactions. The number of debit card transactions rose to 2.325 billion in 2024, up from 2.042 billion in 2023. Credit card transactions also saw a rise, reaching 186 million (up from 168 million), though they represented only 7% of the total.

Spending Patterns and Trends

The average number of transactions per card rose from 107 in 2023 to 122 in 2024. This was largely due to the surge in debit card use, which saw an average of 134 transactions per card, up from 115.

The average annual spending per card also increased, reaching €5,468, up by 10% from €4,947 in 2023. This growth was driven primarily by a 12% rise in debit card spending, which reached €6,002 per card. In contrast, credit card spending per card grew modestly by 2%, to €2,616.

Despite the increase in transaction numbers and overall spending, the average value per transaction fell from €46 to €44, continuing a downward trend. This reflects a growing comfort among Greeks in using cards for smaller, everyday purchases.

Card Fraud Decreases Overall

Encouragingly, card fraud as a proportion of total transactions has decreased significantly. In 2024, fraudulent transactions fell by 14% in number and 13% in value, thanks to enhanced security measures and greater collaboration between payment service providers and both domestic and international institutions.

Fraud in POS (Point of Sale) terminals showed the sharpest decline, with incidents dropping by 35% and the total value of fraudulent POS transactions plummeting by 43%, from €4.2 million in 2023 to €2.4 million in 2024.

Online Fraud and ATM Risks Persist

However, not all areas saw improvement. Card-not-present fraud—mainly involving online transactions—increased by 4%, totaling 349,000 cases, with a slight rise in value to €17.7 million. These fraudulent activities were most common in e-commerce with foreign businesses.

Similarly, fraud at ATMs rose marginally in transaction count, while the total value of such fraud jumped by 22%, from €2 million to €2.4 million.

The burden of fraud-related losses in 2024 fell primarily on cardholders (58%) and payment service providers accepting card transactions (35%), with card issuers bearing only 8% of the losses.

Source: tovima.com