Despite high bank card penetration, Bulgarians prefer to pay cash - report.

By bne IntelliNews November 23, 2010
Bulgaria is the country with the highest penetration of bank cards in the region, however, Bulgarians still prefer to pay in cash, Manuel Alexe, MasterCard Europe's vice president for Balkans, said as cited by investor.bg. According to a MasterCard survey, 91% of Bulgarians who own bank cards prefer to pay in cash for purchases of less than BGN 20 (EUR 10) and a mere 7% prefer to use their card. A total 34% use their cards for purchases over BGN 20, however, 62% still prefer to pay in cash. Some 4mn Bulgarians have Maestro bank cards and about 500,000 have MasterCards, Alexe said citing data from national card operator BORICA. Bulgarians use their cards more often but use them mainly for cash withdrawals, Alexe pointed out. On December 1, MasterCard will present its PayPass contactless payment service in Bulgaria, Alexe also said.

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