NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Friday, December 20, 2013

The use of payment cards in Kenya has shrunk despite the rising number of people acquiring the cards. This is after users stifled use of the cards since the start of the year, with the value of transactions registering a huge decline.

According to new official figures from Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), the use of the cards is facing turbulent times as more people holding them avoid to shop or pay for services using the system.

The worst hit are debit cards, whose use was on the rise as banks replaced ATM cards with the gadgets to enable consumers carry out various transactions besides withdrawing cash.