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The value of card payments in Malaysia recorded a decline of 4.9% in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns, physical distancing restrictions and the closing of brick and mortar shops, GlobalData said in a statement.
“However, with improving economic conditions and the vaccination programme, card payments are estimated to grow by 8.5% in 2021.”
Ravi Sharma, a senior analyst at GlobalData, said Malaysia made significant progress in the adoption of card payments in the past few years, thanks to increased banking services, rising consumer awareness on electronic payments and higher merchant acceptance.
“While the market was affected due to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, it is expected to rebound as consumers shift from cash to non-cash payments to avoid getting infected,” Sharma said.
He also noted Bank Negara Malaysia statistics showing that contactless card transactions accounted for 50% of all card payments in 2020, which was an increase of 33% from 2019.
“The Malaysian card payments market has registered sustained growth in the last few years,” Sharma said.
“Although, the Covid-19 crisis hampered the growth trajectory, improving payments infrastructure and rising demand for contactless and online payments will aid the card payments market growth over the next few years.”
GobalData said the Malaysian card payment space is dominated by credit and charge cards, accounting for 73.1% of the total value of card payments in 2020 while debit card accounted for the remaining 26.9%.
Both debit and credit card transactions will increase with pandemic restrictions being eased and rising consumer spending.
It added that credit and charge card payments are set to grow by 5.5% in 2021 while debit cards will grow by 24.4% during the same period.
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