Turkey becomes Europe’s largest credit card market

According to a report by Mastercard titled ‘The Contributions of Digital Payments to Economic Development in Türkiye’, Turkey has become Europe’s largest market in terms of credit card numbers, surpassing Spain based on European Central Bank data from late June 2025.

The report highlights a robust payment ecosystem in Turkey, featuring 142 million credit cards and 319 million debit cards, including prepaid cards. Annual payments made via cards reached 24.1 trillion TL in 2025. The study identifies three primary economic drivers of digital payments: increased tax revenues through reduced informal economy activity, contributions to household consumption, and support for service exports that bolster tourism revenue.

Digital payments are estimated to have had an impact of approximately 1.5 trillion TL on household consumption in 2025. The highest contributions were observed in the travel sector at 546 billion TL, followed by the restaurant sector at 427 billion TL. Other notable areas include furniture, electronics, clothing, and accommodation. While Turkey’s digital payment penetration currently stands at 69%, the report suggests that moving closer to the 95% penetration seen in mature markets could significantly increase economic contributions.