Credit card transactions during the first eight months of 2022 in the occupied areas by Cypriot citizens residing in the south more than doubled, reaching €29.37 million compared to the corresponding period of 2019 (pre-pandemic), according to data from the JCC Smart payment system.

According to the Cyprus News Agency (Cna), data shows that the transactions made in August 2022 alone exceeded the transactions made in the entire eight months of 2021, a year when there were restrictions on movement due to the coronavirus pandemic.

JCC data showed that credit card transactions in the first eight months of 2022 totalled €29,374,535, compared to €13,878,281 in the same period in 2019. In the same period in 2021, transactions had amounted to just €4,554,166.

In August 2022 alone, according to the data, transactions reached a record high of €4,842,259. For comparison purposes, in August 2019, transactions had amounted to €2,111,605, while in the same period in 2021 they had amounted to only €1,726,844.

It was noted that since 2019 to date, card usage by Cypriot citizens has almost doubled across the entire market spectrum, which is also reflected in card usage in the occupied areas.