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Visa, MasterCard taking over as standard debit brands in Europe

At the end of 2014, Visa was the largest scheme in Europe, with 28 percent of all cards according to a report from RBR.

March 7, 2016

Visa and MasterCard brands collectively account for 86 percent of all European payment cards, according to the RBR report, "Payment Cards Issuing and Acquiring Europe 2016," which covers 31 countries in the region.

According to a press release from RBR, Visa holds the largest share in Europe as a whole and in western Europe, while MasterCard has a larger share in central and eastern Europe.

The report finds that Visa Electron and Maestro are gradually being migrated to Visa and MasterCard for current account debit cards— a trend that is expected to continue over the next few years.

Wider acceptance of Visa and MasterCard, compared to Visa Electron and Maestro, also makes these brands more appealing to cardholders, and in some markets a perceived association with payments rather than cash withdrawals will increase issuance of these schemes, RBR said.

At the end of 2014, Visa was the largest scheme in Europe, with 28 percent of total cards according to RBR’s report. The brand is stronger in western Europe than in CEE and is particularly strong in Ireland, the U.K. and Norway, RBR found.

The MasterCard portfolio of brands collectively accounts for almost the same share of the European total as Visa brands, but the MasterCard brand on its own has a significantly smaller share than the Visa brand.

While Visa and MasterCard account for the vast majority of cards in issue but there are a number of other schemes in circulation. Domestic schemes account for 5 percent of the European total, although many are now being replaced or dual-badged with international schemes.

Domestic schemes are strongest in Russia and Switzerland, where they account for 21 percent and 16 percent of all cards, respectively.