Visa generates $1-trillion credit card transactions

MANILA, Philippines - Visa Inc. has reported a $1 trillion in total volume generated on all cards across Asia Pacific end March 2010, an increase of 13.2 percent over the same period last year.

The number of payment transactions rose to 9.8 billion, up from 8.6 billion 12 months ago, as the trend of consumers moving from using cash and checks to electronic forms of payment continued. Payment volume, representing the aggregate dollar amount of purchases made with cards carrying the Visa, Visa Electron or Interlink brands, increased 10.2 percent to $738 billion for the 12-month period ending March 31, 2010.

Visa Group Executive, International Elizabeth Buse said the strong growth in total volume and transaction volume was positive signs that businesses and consumers in Asia Pacific are spending more.

“The headwinds that many economies in Asia Pacific were facing 12 months ago have abated over the last 12 months to the point where we are seeing solid payments growth across the region. In particular, the Southeast Asian economies of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand have delivered robust growth, as consumers spend more on their Visa cards,” Buse said, in a statement.

She said that beyond volume growth, the increasing number of transactions across the region reflects the global trend of an increasing proportion of transactions taking place using electronic forms at the cost of cash and paper payments.

The credit card executive said that the trend makes it critical that infrastructure in both developed and developing economies can support the demand of business and consumers domestically and internationally.

Globally, cross-border volume increased 12 percent on a constant dollar basis for the first three months of 2010, following a gradual upswing in outbound global travel.

“The increase in cross-border volume indicates the beginnings of a recovery in outbound global travel. Consumers, feeling more confident of their economic circumstances, are once again putting their discretionary spending dollars into international leisure and business travel, and are using their Visa payment cards to purchase everything they need on their journey – airline tickets, accommodation, car rentals, food and entertainment,” Buse added.