Visa: End-of-Year tourist transactions up by 40% in Sri Lanka
View(s):Visa, the global leader in digital payments, has seen a marked uptick in spending by both tourists and domestic consumers in Sri Lanka during the holiday season at the end of 2024.
Visa Consulting & Analytics (VCA), Visa’s advisory arm, highlighted key findings of consumer spend patterns during this period that saw an increase in commerce across payment options and channels, the company said in a media release.
An analysis of end-of-year spends of 2023 and 2024 showcased a 40 per cent increase in cross-border card transactions in physical stores, with a clear preference for using debit cards, that witnessed almost 50 per cent increase over last year. The more than 35 per cent surge in domestic card spends over the previous year was anchored by higher debit card spends, both online (~55 per cent) and in-store (more than 40 per cent).
Avanthi Colombage, Country Manager, Sri Lanka and Maldives, Visa said, “We are thrilled to see the remarkable uptick in spending driven by Sri Lankans and our valued international visitors, a testament to the resilience and vibrancy of our country. At Visa, we are proud to play an integral role in facilitating the dynamic payments ecosystem and ensuring that holiday and travel experiences are seamless, convenient, secure, and truly memorable for everyone.”
With an influx of over 2 million tourists in 2024 and expected to reach 3 million in 2025, there was a surge of 40 per cent in cross-border transactions through debit and credit cards over last year. More than 50 per cent of this growth was contributed by nine countries – Australia, Canada, France, Germany, UAE, India, Japan, UK and USA. Interestingly, the country also saw tourists from at least 13 new countries like Afghanistan and Barbados that had not previously performed digital transactions in the island nation.
Ms. Colombage added: “The majority of spends by tourists was witnessed in categories like lodging, airline bookings, restaurants, retail shopping and other travel-related expenses. Meanwhile, domestic consumer spends were concentrated primarily on everyday categories like food and grocery, apparel, restaurants and fuel.”
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