Bulgarians Remain Wary of 'Plastic' Money - Poll

Finance | March 15, 2011, Tuesday // 15:39|  views

Only 9% of all Bulgarians own a credit card, according to a recent poll. File photo

Bulgarians are not informed enough about the opportunities offered by the ownership and use of credit and debit cards, according to a poll of the Financial Markets Data Services of the Market Research Institute, GfK Bulgaria.

The poll has been conducted at the end of 2010.

51% of the respondents say they do not own any bank cards while 34% have one, but use it only for direct deposits from their employer. 53% use the bank selected by their employer either because they do not have enough information about the option to make their own choice or because they do not want to deal with such choice, experts say in interpreting the results.

Bulgarians use bank cards mainly to withdraw cash – 87% use it to receive their monthly salary while another 23% say they use it to get money from a bank teller.

41% use bank cards 2-3 times a month and 31% just use it once. 18% use it once a week or more often – a sign Bulgarians still mistrust or don't know enough about "plastic money," according to GFK researchers.

Those using bank cards more frequently have higher education and income, and live in the largest cities.

Only 7% use their debit cards to pay household bills and 16% use them to make store purchases, but 21% of those with college education pay through bank cards at the supermarket.

Only 9% of all Bulgarians own a credit card and 39% use it to get cash – another sign Bulgarians are not educated about bank cards because such transaction comes with high interest rates and fees.

Only 2% to 4% use credit cards for travel arrangements and online purchases.

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Tags: Financial Markets Data Services, Market Research Institute, GfK Bulgaria, poll, bank cards, credit cards, debit cards

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