Western Europe

Consumer lending in Portugal is expanding in 2023 amid rising interest rates and decline in households’ disposable incomes. Demand for mortgages is slowing down with card lending posting the most dynamic growth. BNPL, although representing a small…

Buy now pay later (BNPL) continues to grow in popularity, particularly among young adults, and there is a notable shift to BNPL loans. A significant number of financial services providers have launched their own BNPL programmes, including Banco…

Consumer lending in Portugal maintains its positive growth trend in 2023. Demand for loans both for last-minute expenses and for current expenses is rising as consumers lose purchasing power and as savings stashed during the pandemic diminish. In…

Charge cards are the second-most-favoured option of local consumers when it comes to payment cards, after debit cards but ahead of credit cards. This is partly down to inertia—charge cards have a longer tradition than credit cards in Spain.

With low levels of penetration in the country, charge cards continues to grow in 2023 as it recovers from its sharp drop in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2023, boosted by inflation and by the recovery of business, transaction value is…