Christmas is a time when our credit cards get a workout. Data from the RBA shows a significant hike in the number of transactions leading up to the holidays. We marked these in yellow. But it is worth noting that whilst credit limits are rising, revolving balances are not.
But card use varies by our household segments as used in our surveys.
Using data from our household surveys we find that the relative proportion of households with credit cards varies considerably. Almost all younger households have cards, as do more affluent households. Disadvantaged households are less likely to had access to a credit card.
If we then overlay the average transaction turnover and revolving balances these also vary by segment. For examples, wealthy seniors use their cards and have high turnover balances, but revolve very little. On the other hand, exclusive professionals use their cards, and revolve significantly.
Younger families are also using their cards, but the average balance and turnover is lower.
This once again highlights the importance of customer segmentation within financial services. You can read more about our analysis of credit card economics here.
