Overseas Travel Boosts 5 Major Banks' Q1 Credit Card Spending to NT$904.6 Billion, Up 15% Year-on-Year
Driven by overseas travel, the credit card spending of Taiwan's five major issuing banks reached NT$904.6 billion in the first quarter, a 15% year-on-year increase. In March alone, total spending was NT$328.28 billion, up 23.43%. CTBC Bank maintained its lead with NT$84.6 billion in March, followed by Cathay United Bank with NT$83.1 billion. The World Baseball Classic and cherry blossom season in Japan significantly contributed to this growth.
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- 📰 Published: April 15, 2026 at 20:22
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TAIPEI, April 15 (Central News Agency) - The 6th World Baseball Classic (WBC) boosted travel to Japan in March, leading to a combined credit card spending of NT$328.28 billion by the five major issuing banks, a 23.43% year-on-year increase. CTBC Bank remained in first place with NT$84.6 billion in spending. The total credit card spending for the five major issuing banks in the first quarter reached NT$904.64 billion, a 15.76% year-on-year growth.
According to credit card data released by the five major issuing banks, CTBC Bank was still the champion in March with NT$84.6 billion in spending, followed by Cathay United Bank with NT$83.1 billion. The others were Taipei Fubon Bank with NT$56.56 billion, E.SUN Bank with NT$52.74 billion, and Taishin Bank with NT$51.26 billion. The combined spending of these five banks in March was NT$328.28 billion.
CTBC Bank stated that its credit card spending in March reached NT$84.6 billion, a 26.5% year-on-year growth, and its first-quarter credit card spending was NT$238.9 billion, a nearly 24% year-on-year increase, setting a new record for the first quarter. The bank also ranked first in terms of circulating cards, active cards, and new card issuances.
Cathay United Bank pointed out that in March, driven by the WBC craze and Japan's cherry blossom season, demand for travel to Japan and travel arrangements boosted consumption momentum. Its March spending reached NT$83.1 billion, a 26% year-on-year growth. Its first-quarter total credit card spending reached NT$220.1 billion, a 16% increase compared to the same period last year.
Taipei Fubon Bank's credit card spending in March was NT$56.56 billion, and its first-quarter spending reached NT$156.1 billion, a nearly 7% year-on-year growth, with both monthly and cumulative figures setting new records for the same period. Taipei Fubon Bank noted that the growth in March spending mainly came from travel and hypermarkets, accounting for nearly 40% of total consumption.
E.SUN Bank's March spending was NT$52.7 billion, setting a new record for single-month credit card spending, with a nearly 15.9% year-on-year increase. The main sources included mobile payments, travel, and overseas consumption channels, all maintaining double-digit growth. In particular, the WBC travel craze to Japan and the arrival of the cherry blossom season strongly boosted consumption in Japan and South Korea.
Taishin Bank's credit card spending in March was nearly NT$51.3 billion, a year-on-year increase of about 29.3%. Excluding comprehensive income tax factors, this was the first time single-month spending exceeded NT$50 billion, with significant growth in overseas, travel, and insurance premium consumption, and single-month overseas spending reaching a historical high.
Observing the single-month card issuance status, CTBC Bank led with 109,000 cards, followed by E.SUN Bank with 59,000 cards, Cathay United Bank with 58,000 cards, Taishin Bank with approximately 45,000 cards, and Taipei Fubon Bank with 42,000 cards.
CTBC Bank stated that its March card issuance reached 109,000 cards, with CTBC uniopen co-branded cards being the main growth driver. LINE Pay co-branded cards, airline, transportation, and department store co-branded cards also showed stable growth, boosting the overall new card volume.
According to credit card data released by the five major issuing banks, CTBC Bank was still the champion in March with NT$84.6 billion in spending, followed by Cathay United Bank with NT$83.1 billion. The others were Taipei Fubon Bank with NT$56.56 billion, E.SUN Bank with NT$52.74 billion, and Taishin Bank with NT$51.26 billion. The combined spending of these five banks in March was NT$328.28 billion.
CTBC Bank stated that its credit card spending in March reached NT$84.6 billion, a 26.5% year-on-year growth, and its first-quarter credit card spending was NT$238.9 billion, a nearly 24% year-on-year increase, setting a new record for the first quarter. The bank also ranked first in terms of circulating cards, active cards, and new card issuances.
Cathay United Bank pointed out that in March, driven by the WBC craze and Japan's cherry blossom season, demand for travel to Japan and travel arrangements boosted consumption momentum. Its March spending reached NT$83.1 billion, a 26% year-on-year growth. Its first-quarter total credit card spending reached NT$220.1 billion, a 16% increase compared to the same period last year.
Taipei Fubon Bank's credit card spending in March was NT$56.56 billion, and its first-quarter spending reached NT$156.1 billion, a nearly 7% year-on-year growth, with both monthly and cumulative figures setting new records for the same period. Taipei Fubon Bank noted that the growth in March spending mainly came from travel and hypermarkets, accounting for nearly 40% of total consumption.
E.SUN Bank's March spending was NT$52.7 billion, setting a new record for single-month credit card spending, with a nearly 15.9% year-on-year increase. The main sources included mobile payments, travel, and overseas consumption channels, all maintaining double-digit growth. In particular, the WBC travel craze to Japan and the arrival of the cherry blossom season strongly boosted consumption in Japan and South Korea.
Taishin Bank's credit card spending in March was nearly NT$51.3 billion, a year-on-year increase of about 29.3%. Excluding comprehensive income tax factors, this was the first time single-month spending exceeded NT$50 billion, with significant growth in overseas, travel, and insurance premium consumption, and single-month overseas spending reaching a historical high.
Observing the single-month card issuance status, CTBC Bank led with 109,000 cards, followed by E.SUN Bank with 59,000 cards, Cathay United Bank with 58,000 cards, Taishin Bank with approximately 45,000 cards, and Taipei Fubon Bank with 42,000 cards.
CTBC Bank stated that its March card issuance reached 109,000 cards, with CTBC uniopen co-branded cards being the main growth driver. LINE Pay co-branded cards, airline, transportation, and department store co-branded cards also showed stable growth, boosting the overall new card volume.