Monthly number of active credit card accounts in the UK 2012-2023

The number of active credit card accounts in the United Kingdom (UK) generally increased between 2012 and 2021 with significant variation between certain months. There was a sharp increase in active credit card accounts between February 2019 and February 2020 and an equivalent decline thereafter. As of October 2021, there were 34.79 million accounts in the UK. Active credit card accounts are those with balances outstanding at the end of the calendar month, and make up more than half of the total credit card accounts in the UK for the same period. As of October 2021, there were approximately 52.97 million active credit card accounts in the UK.Transactions and purchasesThe global coronavirus pandemic has had a negative effect on credit card transactions in the UK. Between December 2019 and June 2020, the number of monthly credit card transactions has almost halved. The value of purchases has also seen a decrease into 2020. Average purchase amountsAlong with the number of transactions and the fall in the value of purchases made, the average amount spent per purchase using a credit card has also fallen in 2020. This suggests that the current economic situation is making individuals far more cautious of the purchases they make.

自2012年至2021年，英国（UK）的活跃信用卡账户数量总体呈上升趋势，但某些月份间的波动显著。2019年2月至2020年2月间，活跃信用卡账户数量急剧上升，此后则呈现相等的下降趋势。截至2021年10月，英国共有3479万账户。活跃信用卡账户是指月末仍有余额的账户，占同期英国总信用卡账户的一半以上。截至2021年10月，英国约有5297万活跃信用卡账户。交易与购买全球冠状病毒大流行对英国的信用卡交易产生了负面影响。2019年12月至2020年6月间，月度信用卡交易数量几乎减半。购买价值亦在2020年出现下降。平均购买金额随着交易数量和购买价值的下降，使用信用卡进行的平均每次购买金额在2020年也有所下降。这表明当前的经济形势使得个人在购买行为上变得更加谨慎。