The Bank of Finland published quarterly payment statistics showing that card payments made with Finnish cards rose in both value and volume in the first quarter of 2026. Customers made 590 million card payments worth EUR 17.8 billion between January and March, up EUR 942 million, or 5.6%, from a year earlier, while the number of transactions increased 3.7%. The release indicates that annual growth in euro terms accelerated slightly even as growth in transaction numbers slowed. Card payment values increased year on year in nearly all industries. The largest increase in euro terms came from recreation and culture, where payments rose 12.4% to EUR 2.1 billion and the number of payments increased 10.9% to 58 million. Both measures have now grown at an annual rate of more than 10% for five consecutive quarters. The industry's share of total card payment value rose from 9.5% when the statistics began in the first quarter of 2022 to 11.7% in the first quarter of 2026, close to its highest recorded level. Over the same period, the food industry's share fell below 30% for a fourth consecutive quarter to 29.7%, while the miscellaneous goods and services category rose by more than 4 percentage points to 19.3%, supported particularly by financial services including person-to-person card payments. The payment mix continued to shift away from chip and magnetic stripe use. Slightly more than one quarter of total card payment value was made using chip or magnetic stripe, the lowest share since the series began in 2022, while contactless payments accounted for 45% and remote payments for 29%. Usage patterns differed by sector, with contactless representing nearly 70% of payment value in grocery stores, restaurants and hotels, whereas chip and magnetic stripe still made up more than 40% in housing repair and vehicle purchase and use. The next quarterly payment statistics release is scheduled for 3 September 2026.

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