Credit Card Spending Rises Sharply at Home and Abroad in September

Credit card transactions increased both within Bangladesh and overseas, according to the latest report published by Bangladesh Bank. The data shows a significant rise in card usage in September compared to August, with domestic spending outpacing foreign transactions.

In September, overseas spending through credit cards rose by Tk 51.01 crore compared to August. Meanwhile, domestic credit card transactions grew by Tk 251 crore during the same period—five times higher than the increase in foreign spending.

According to the report, Bangladeshi credit card users spent Tk 443.03 crore abroad in August 2025, which increased to Tk 494.02 crore in September. Domestic usage also showed an upward trend, rising from Tk 3,144 crore in August to Tk 3,395 crore in September.

On the other hand, spending by foreign visitors inside Bangladesh slightly declined. In August, foreign nationals spent Tk 183.05 crore, which fell to Tk 175.09 crore in September—a decrease of Tk 8 crore. Among foreign visitors, U.S. citizens spent the most, amounting to Tk 38.06 crore, followed by citizens of the United Kingdom and India, who spent Tk 17 crore each.

Data from July shows that the highest overseas credit card spending by Bangladeshis took place in the United States (Tk 70.09 crore), followed by Thailand (Tk 59.09 crore) and the United Kingdom (Tk 54.01 crore).

Other notable destinations included Singapore (Tk 40.04 crore), Malaysia (Tk 34 crore), India (Tk 32.03 crore), the Netherlands (Tk 25 crore), Saudi Arabia (Tk 24 crore), Canada (Tk 21 crore), Australia (Tk 17 crore), Ireland (Tk 16 crore), China (Tk 15 crore) and various other countries totaling Tk 92 crore.