Singapore card payments set for 6.2% rise, reaching S$158.2B in 2025; to continue growing through 2029

SINGAPORE: Singapore’s card payments market is set to rise 6.2% to S$158.2 billion in 2025, thanks to the city-state’s extensive merchant acceptance, near-universal bank access, and rising use of contactless payments, Singapore Business Review reported, citing data and analytics company GlobalData.

This year, credit and charge cards led total card payment value, making up 67.6% of the market. credit card use stayed strong as rewards, cashback, and instalment plans continued to draw consumers lifting both credit card volumes and values over debit cards.

On the other hand, debit cards accounted for S$51.2 billion, or 32.4% of this year’s total card payment value, which the firm attributed to financial inclusion initiatives and low-cost basic accounts from major banks.

The report also noted how policy and subsidy initiatives have helped merchant acceptance of card payments through the Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG), which provided small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) with up to 50% funding for POS installations.

GlobalData lead banking and payments analyst Ravi Sharma said, “Singapore’s payment card market has benefited from a near-100% banked population, a mature acceptance network, and coordinated efforts by government, regulators and banks to promote electronic payments. These factors, alongside innovation in contactless solutions and expanding merchant acceptance—including hawker centres and small merchants—have driven sustained growth in card payments.”

The growth of card payments this year follows a continuation of the strong recovery and structural shift to electronic payments, he added.

Last year, Singapore’s card payment value rose 5% year-on-year (YoY) to S$148.9 billion as consumer spending, e-commerce expansion, and acceptance of contactless payments picked up.

Mr Sharma noted that Singapore’s total card payments are expected to continue growing through 2029, supported by further contactless adoption, subsidy-backed merchant acceptance expansion, stronger credit card demand, and continued improvements in payment infrastructure. /TISG

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