Christmas spend using KB cards up by one third y/y; KB’s most active client used his card 144 times for payment

Press release

1/11/2011
8:00 AM

Holders of payment cards issued by Komerční banka spent almost CZK 3.9 billion on their Christmas shopping between 1 and 27 December 2010. Compared with the same period of 2009, the volume of Christmas shopping paid by cards increased 27%. The volume of payments for on-line purchases increased by as much as 62% y/y in the same period.

“The number and volume of KB card payments are going up every year. In the run-up to Christmas 2010, holders of payment cards issued by Komerční banka spent the largest amount of money at department stores, and they made the largest number of transactions at the Globus hypermarkets,” said Monika Truchliková, Deputy Executive Director for Marketing and Business Development at Komerční banka.

Komerční banka’s most active client carried out as many as 144 transactions using his card in the period under review. This year’s innovation of the MojeOdměny scheme, whereby the bank will return the fee for a withdrawal from KB’s ATM for every payment made using a card, has been designed to reach out to active clients. The most active December client would therefore be entitled up to 144 free withdrawals from KB’s ATMs in the new system, i.e., he could recoup up to CZK 720 from the bank.

Komerční banka’s clients also increasingly frequently use above-standard services such as their own picture on the face of their payment cards and cash back – cash withdrawal at check-out from retailers.

At the end of 2010, Komerční banka operated 20,499 payment terminals at retailers in the Czech Republic, and a network of 677 ATMs.

Komerční banka is one of the best run universal banks in Central Europe. It provides comprehensive services to clients in the areas of retail, corporate, and investment banking. The Komerční banka Group’s 8,624 employees serve 2.7 million clients, who can use an extensive network of 395 points of sale throughout the country. Komerční banka currently operates 676 ATMs and 989,000 of its clients use one of direct banking channels.

Komerční banka is part of the Société Générale Group, one of the largest banking groups in the euro zone (in terms of market capitalisation), whose 157,000 employees serve more than 32 million individual clients worldwide.