Penetration of Payment Cards in Syria Still Very Low

Damascus, Syria, October 30, 2009 –(PR.com)– A staggering 61 percent of bank clients in Syria do not own any form of plastic cards shows Syria Banking Monitor, Acumen�s survey of banking usage and attitudes.

The survey also found that of the people who do own plastic cards, only 4 percent have ever used their cards to make a purchase at a point of sale. While cardholders are more likely to use their cards on ATMs than at points of sale, the study reveals that, even on ATMs, usage is mostly infrequent.

In terms of the incidence of bank account ownership in Syria, the 2009 edition of Syria Banking Monitor indicated that the incidence rate remains relatively low at around 16 percent of the urban adult population. Nevertheless, the analysis of survey results suggests that the number of urban bank patrons in Syria is projected to grow at a rate of 15-20 percent over the next 12 months.

As for people’s personal finances and savings habits, the survey has found that more than 70 percent of Syrians save money either regularly or intermittently. Furthermore, survey results indicate that more than half of urban Syrians have participated in rotating savings and credit associations (ROSCAS; jam`iyat in Arabic) at one point in time. Participation in ROSCAS, which are an informal form of financial intermediation found in most developing countries, was interestingly found to be almost equally widespread across most groups of survey respondents, regardless of gender, age, social class or bank account ownership.

About Syria Banking Monitor:

Syria Banking Monitor is a syndicated (multi-client) research survey covering the Syrian population’s usage of retail banking services and people’s attitudes towards banks and banking in general. The survey, which will be conducted on an annual basis, aims to create a time series of data to monitor the development of key indicators relevant to the Syrian retail banking sector over time. Syria Banking Monitor is organized around the following main themes:

– Awareness of bank brands
– Incidence of bank account ownership
– Usage of banking products and services
– Attitudes towards conventional and Islamic banks
– Savings habits and personal finances

The 2009 edition of Syria Banking Monitor surveyed a sample of 2721 urban adults between 18 July and 21 August. The full report on survey findings is available for purchase subject to Acumen’s syndicated research terms and conditions.

About Acumen

Acumen (www.acumen-sy.com) is the leading full-service market research agency in Syria with a capacity to field surveys across all Syrian territories. Serving clients from Syria and the wider region since establishment in 2003, Acumen has accumulated extensive research experience in the automotive, banking, consumer goods, property development, and telecom industries. Acumen complies with the ICC/ESOMAR Code of Marketing and Social Research Practice.

###