China Unionpay overseas deals up 44% during Spring Festival

BEIJING - China Unionpay Co, the world's largest credit card company in terms of number of cards issued, said Thursday its overseas transactions grew robustly during this year's Spring Festival holiday, which lasted from February 2 to 8.

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The value of overseas transactions using the China Unionpay cards jumped 44 percent year-on-year to 6.37 billion yuan ($965 million), said a statement on the company's website.

Further, China Unionpay card transactions rose strongly at popular tourist destinations, including Japan, Singapore and Thailand, during the seven-day holiday. In Taiwan alone, the bankcard transactions exceeded 100 million yuan.

China Unionpay cards have been accepted by 104 countries and regions, as of the end of last year, which facilitate the use of the cards overseas.

Boosted by the expanding acceptance of the cards, its transactions in countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Canada, and South Africa more than doubled during the Spring Festival, the statement said.