The Credit Card Association of the Philippines (CCAP) is anticipating the card business to grow in the low 20-percent rate due mainly to high inflation that is expected to remain in double-digit level for the rest of the year.
There are approximately 6.2 million cards-in-force in the Philippines at the start of the year.
CCAP president Claire Ann T. Yap said the card growth is likewise supported by the entry of new players in the card business.
“Then there are consolidations in the banking sector that will result in stronger players,” Yap said, referring to the merger of Philippine National Bank and Allied Banking Corp.
Allied Bank also launched recently its own card that featured among others the popular Mabuhay Miles rewards with Philippine Airlines.
Thrift and rural banks are also aggressively seeking co-branding arrangements with commercial banks and other issuers. AIG Philam Savings Bank has been very aggressive that it has barged into the country’s top bank issuers.
“The potentials are still enormous,” Yap, who is also senior vice president of HSBC, added. — TPT