girocard the most widely used card payment method in Germany—and will remain so. the Germany Banking Industry Committee is currently working the Germany Banking Industry Committee expanding the girocard system with new functionalities, thereby taking major steps toward the future.
5 girocard advantages at a glance.
No longer up to date? No longer usable abroad? Quite the contrary. The following five facts show why girocard the leading payment method Germany—and what Sparkassen advantages the debit card issued by German banks and Sparkassen offers.
girocard the card the future.
Customers can continue to pay as usual with girocard whether it has the Maestro logo or not. It is accepted at all previous acceptance points and ATMs, and what's more, the number of payment points is actually growing, now totaling almost 1.2 million.
Customers usually receive a girocard automatically with their checking account. Before it expires, you will receive Sparkasse new girocard from your bank or Sparkasse as usual.
girocard retail sector clear number one in retail sector .
girocard and remains retail sector most popular payment method in the retail sector . As the market leader in Germany, it stands for a proven, secure, and established payment method. This is not surprising, as it is a reliable partner from a commercial perspective, offering a particularly cost-efficient system for guaranteed payments. And, of course, these cost advantages are ultimately also felt by consumers. With around 100 million cards issued (physical or digital in smartphones), girocard offers unparalleled market coverage.
Always up to date.
Both technically and in terms of its widespread use, girocard is girocard ideal basis for establishing innovations in the market. Contactless payment, for example, only became girocard in Germany with girocard . As part of an innovative product roadmap, the development of numerous new functions for girocard is now girocard the agenda – tailored precisely to the needs of retail sector customers in Germany. This not only gives them greater convenience, but also allows them to continue to benefit from the highest security standards and the best possible cost efficiency.
The leading debit card in Germany.
With around 100 million cards issued, girocard is girocard most widely used debit card in Germany (7.5 billion times in 2023). With a debit card, the amount is debited directly from the checking account. What is the difference between a debit card and a credit card? Unlike a debit card, credit card transactions are first collected on a card account and then usually debited from the customer's checking account once a month.
Incidentally, girocard also the first debit card in Germany: the first payment using card PIN was made in Germany back in 1990, at that time still under the name "card." It has been known by its current name since 2007. - and has been scoring points with its girocard benefits ever since.
Use your girocard abroad girocard usual.
The card usually card additional acceptance logos such as Maestro (from Mastercard) or V Pay (from Visa). These so-called co-badges enable payment by girocard abroad. Although new girocards with Maestro functionality will generally no longer be issued from July 2023, customers will still be able to pay as usual with these cards and the co-badge function at home and abroad until their expiry date. Anyone who currently has a girocard with Maestro function will receive a new solution when they replace their card as usual.girocard , banks and Sparkassen will generally combinegirocard with another co-badge, e.g., Debit Mastercard, Visa Debit, or the V-Pay function.
Finally, some more interesting facts.
girocard overtaken cash: in 2021, it ranked first among all payment methods in German retail with a 42.4 percent share of sales, relegating cash (38.5 percent) to second place (survey by the EHI Retail Institute). girocard broad-based growth: in terms of active acceptance points, transactions, share of sales in brick-and-mortar retail, the number of new partners and possible uses, and technical innovations. All of this makes girocard tangible for users.
