UK card transactions up four percent in August 2022 

There were 2.1billion debit card transactions in the UK in August, 8 percent more than in August 2021. The total spend was £64.1bn, 4 percent higher than August in 2021.

In terms of credit cards, there were 376.6million transactions in August, 12.5% higher than August 2021, with a total spend of £20.1bn, this leaves the value of transactions in August 2022 18.5% higher than last year.

Outstanding balances on cards have also increased. This year, outstanding balances on credit cards grew by 11% in the twelve months leading up to August 2022. 51.2% of outstanding balances incurred interest, compared to 53.7 percent twelve months ago.

The data also delves into card transactions made both in the UK and oversees, with British cards. There were 2.1bn card transactions made in August 2022, both in the UK and abroad. This was a 7.1% increase on August of last year. The value of these transactions came to £72.8bn, a 5.7% from August 2021.

Of these payments, 62% of them were made via contactless payments on credit cards, while 71% of debit card payments were used with contactless.

There were 1.5bn contactless card transactions in August, 18.9% higher than August 2021’s figures, which sat at 1.3bn. The total value of contactless payments in August 2022 was £22.8bn, which was 47.9% higher than in August 2021.

The number of contactless credit card transactions was 32.1 per cent higher than August 2021. Meanwhile, the number of contactless debit card transactions was 17 per cent higher.

A UK Finance spokesperson said: “The annual increase in outstanding balances on credit cards reflects a return to normal spending patterns post-pandemic.

“During the pandemic we saw a significant drop in credit card spending due to various lockdown restrictions. The reopening of the economy resulted in a sharp rise in credit card spending, and therefore large percentage variations when compared to 2021 data.”