UnionPay joined hands with Cebuana Lhuillier Rural Bank, a Philippine partner, to issue six million debit cards at the end of 2020.

Barclaycard, the global payment arm of Barclays Bank Plc, processes nearly half of the UK's credit and debit card transactions.

"Based on what we have seen from digits in previous years, an average card transaction from a Chinese debit card of over 4,000 kroner ($517).

"In the future we intend to offer Cuba a debit and credit card dispensing machine to make the work of banks and the lives of citizens more efficient," she said.

The co-branded card, which is a credit and debit card, also entitles holders to free personal accident insurance.

Though consumers in Germany paid more for their purchases with debit and credit cards than with cash for the first time in 2018, about 76.1 percent of all retail purchases in Germany were still made using cash, which shows that Germans generally still preferred to pay small sums in cash, according to the EHI Retail Institute.

At least 42 percent of consumers will splurge on items using a credit card (one of the most popular ways to pay in the US) followed by 37 percent who will use their debit cards and 19 percent who will use cash.

A red card, the same size as a debit card, shone at the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China's exhibition stand.

Debit cards, third-party account payments and credit cards were the top three choices for mobile payment users.

The overall debit situation of listed companies has improved in the past year, Shanghai Securities News reported on Monday, citing a report co-released by the Institute for Public Policy of Zhejiang University and Institute for Public Policy of Zhejiang province.

In terms of area, East China's Zhejiang province has the most listed companies performing well in debit index in the country, the report said.

In terms of industry, transportation, trade and retail, and machinery industries have the most number of companies among the top 10 Chinese companies in debit index, according to the report.

The funds withdrawn from customers' credit cards can only be transferred to debit cards linked to their e-wallets.

American Express announced on Thursday its joint venture in China, Express (Hangzhou) Technology Service Co, joined with Fuzhou, Fujian province-based Industrial Bank Co to introduce two American Express-branded debit cards, the first debit products to support renminbi transactions on the American Express network.

Other Chinese issuers, such as China Merchants Bank, China CITIC Bank and China Guangfa Bank, will also launch American Express-branded debit products in the coming months.

"Adding debit capabilities to our network is another example of our unwavering commitment to China," said Walter Liu, chief executive officer of Express Company.

To enjoy such perks, people need to possess a debit account at the bank, activate the digital currency function through a few taps on their smartphones, and transfer some cash from the bank account to the digital currency vehicle.

At present, digital currencies are only available at banks where people have debit card accounts.

As the upper limit on ATM cash withdrawal is 20,000 yuan per day per debit card, a client must go to a bank counter to withdraw larger amounts.

Affected by the pandemic, the number of customers using China Merchants Bank Co Ltd debit and credit cards dropped significantly year-on-year in February.

"In November last year, Mutual Trust Bank (MTB) joined hands with UnionPay International to jointly launch debit and credit cards alongside QR code payment, e-wallet and digital card services for the first time in Bangladesh.

The top five types of financial knowledge that consumers are most interested in are bank cards, including debit and credit cards; bank financial products; housing loans; funds and stock investment; and electronic banking services, including mobile banking.

China had issued a total of 7.83 billion bank cards by the end of 2018, with each Chinese person owning about 0.7 credit cards and 4.92 debit cards on average, according to a industry report.

In breakdown, China issued 970 million credit cards with a transaction amount of 38.2 trillion yuan, while debit card issuance stood at 6.86 billion with a transaction amount of 751.4 trillion yuan.

Among the bank cards in use, the number of debit cards rose 13.2 percent year-on-year to reach 6.91 billion.

Simply by providing their name, ID number, debit card number and cellphone number, customers can apply for a personal loan via the Didi Chuxing mobile app.

It already serves millions of Chinese people visiting other countries for travel, business or education, by facilitating payments between the banks of merchants and banks or credit unions that issue branded debit and credit cards.

In addition to enhancing risk management, with the new mobile banking app the bank also allows its clients to open a mobile banking account and link a debit card to that account via facial recognition identification.

[Photo provided to China Daily]Foreign debit and credit card companies face a long fight with local electronic payment market leader UnionPay as industry supervision is still evolving and customer needs are diverse, experts said.

For instance, MasterCard has issued single-branded EMV debit card in China with Bank of China, and a World card with ICBC, targeted at their affluent customers, according to MasterCard CEO Ajay Banga.

As a result of the partnership, UnionPay prepaid and debit cards with chip-enabled technology, will be issued, first into the Kenyan market and then extended into East Africa.

[Photo provided to China Daily]Bank of China said it and payment technology company Mastercard Inc jointly launched a debit card that enables payments in 19 foreign currencies for Chinese cardholder.

Debit cards now account for 70 percent of all payment cards globally and are expected to grow to 72 percent by 2021, according to data from financial consultants Retail Banking Research.

Bryan Ma, product management director of Mastercard, said the number of applicants for international debit cards was rising fast, particularly among those who travel frequently and make big-ticket payment from time to time.

Ma said flexibility was a key reason behind the popularity of debit cards.

"For example, applicants for international debit cards do not need to provide income and assets ownership documents .

"The debit card is also activated immediately after the application is approved and can receive interest from credit deposits.

"The maximum daily withdrawal amount for the international debit cardholders is $1,000 daily through overseas ATMs, and the cards enable cardholders to also make big-ticket payments, such as paying tuition in overseas markets.