Citizens paying by card have been increasing. According to the Bank of Albania, card payments are growing at a fast rate for this year in Albania. In the first six months of the year, a total of about 8.85 million card payments were registered at electronic sales terminals.

The number of card payments has increased by 36% compared to the first 6 months of last year. Meanwhile, the total value of card payments for 6 months has reached 37 billion ALL, with an increase of 41% compared to the same period last year.

Such data show that the rest of the year will have positive results, increasing the use of cards. The increase in the number of foreign tourists in recent years is one of the main factors influencing the rapid growth of bank card payments in Albania.

According to data from the Bank of Albania, the number of POS terminals for accepting card payments in the middle of this year reached 21,775, experiencing a further increase of 23% compared to the middle of last year.

Albania is a country with a high level of cash usage, and with a significant level of informality and fiscal evasion. According to data from the Bank of Albania, in the middle of 2024 the number of active bank cards reached 1.48 million, where about 1.3 million are debit cards, while active credit cards are about 121 thousand.