ASTANA, Kazakhstan, August 31. From January through July of 2025, credit payment cards make up approximately 15.6 percent of all cards in circulation in Kazakhstan, totaling around 12.8 million out of 81.9 million, Trend reports via Kazakhstan's National Bank.
Concurrently, a contraction has been noted in the volume of
credit instruments within predominant global frameworks:
Visa International: a contraction from 659,000 to 648,000
cards;
MasterCard Worldwide: a contraction from 143,000 to 107,000
cards.
Concurrently, credit instruments equipped with supplementary
functionalities, including debit variants with an assigned credit
threshold and prepaid options, are experiencing a downturn in the
context of increasingly prudent banking credit frameworks. The
volume of Visa cards has contracted from 3.11 million to 2.37
million, whereas MasterCard has experienced an uptick from 179,000
to 576,000, signifying a notable paradigm shift in consumer
preferences.
The decrease in the number of traditional credit cards may be related to stricter requirements for credit products and an increase in financial discipline among the population. Banks are likely shifting towards more comprehensive products, such as debit cards with a credit limit, offering customers flexible solutions for managing finances without fully transitioning to credit products.
This trend reflects a growing financial literacy and the desire among clients to avoid excessive debt. Nevertheless, credit cards continue to be an important tool for consumer lending, especially in the small and medium-sized business segment, where they contribute to liquidity and operational flexibility.
