Earning extra credit A surge in plastic

Plastic is growing in the Middle East with the two leading global brands—Visa (12 million card holders) and MasterCard (undisclosed)—dominating the regional market. During the 12 months to September 2006, Visa subscribers increased 23%; card sales value rose 22%, while retail sales volume went up 32%. In its results for 2006, MasterCard reported a growth of 46% in issued cards and a 34% increase in value of purchases, to $18 billion, across the South Asia, Middle East and Africa (SAMEA) region. Denzil Lawson, MasterCard’s general manager for Middle East and Levant, told Executive that as of December 31, 2006, the company’s partner banks had issued 817 million cards for the brand worldwide, an increase of 12.3% over the same period in 2005. “There is a huge potential for the growth of the payments industry in the region, and we expect that the usage of credit cards will further accelerate as