Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0

Author-Name: László Kajdi
Author-Workplace-Name: Magyar Nemzeti Bank
Author-Email: kajdil@mnb.hu

Author-Name: István Nemecskó
Author-Workplace-Name: Magyar Nemzeti Bank
Author-Email: nemecskoi@mnb.hu

Title: Regional Features of Card Payments in Hungary

Abstract: In retail trade, card payments currently represent the most important alternative
to cash, which is less favourable from a social perspective in the long run. Earlier
studies typically focused on the development opportunities of Hungarian electronic
payments at the country level only. This study uses previously unavailable data
to examine the regional features of card payments in Hungary, identifying the
factors influencing their infrastructure and use. The results show that in smaller
settlements the acceptor network is less developed and card ownership is lower,
while in terms of regions, the situation looks bleaker in Northern Hungary and
Central Transdanubia with respect to the POS network, and in the counties of the
Great Plain this is the case in relation to card ownership. Card use is significantly
influenced by the level of development of the acceptor network as well as the
labour market situation. The results reaffirm the necessity of developing the card
acquiring network, for example with state-led programmes, and highlight the fact
that in smaller settlements and less developed regions, card payments are still not
sophisticated enough.

Classification-JEL: G20, D12, R11
Keywords: payments, card acceptance, regional features
Pages: 65-89
Volume: 19
Issue: 1
Year: 2020
File-URL: https://en-hitelintezetiszemle.mnb.hu/letoltes/fer-19-1-st3-kajdi-nemecsko.pdf
File-Format: Application/pdf
Handle: RePEc:mnb:finrev:v:19:y:2020:i:1:p:65-89