The Biggest Domestic Shopper Surpassing the US, China, and Japan is 'Vietnam'

BC Card Analyzes Foreign Tourist Spending in 2023
Vietnamese Tourists Average Approval Amount 197,000 KRW
Total Usage Up 308%... Duty-Free Shops, Department Stores, Hospitals

Vietnamese tourists were found to have the highest average card approval amount among foreign tourists visiting Korea.

On the 3rd, BC Card analyzed the domestic merchant consumption status of foreign tourists in 2022 and found that Vietnamese tourists had the highest per capita average card approval amount (the approval amount divided by the number of approvals) at 197,000 KRW, compared to Chinese and Japanese tourists, showing an 89% increase from the previous year.

Vietnamese tourists were found to have the highest average card approval amount among foreign tourists visiting the country.
Photo by Yonhap News

This figure surpasses the per capita average card approval amounts of Japanese (188,000 KRW), Chinese (171,000 KRW), Taiwanese (126,000 KRW), and American (109,000 KRW) tourists during the same period.

Last year, the total domestic card usage amount by Vietnamese tourists increased by 308% compared to the previous year. Over the past three years, the top spending sectors for Vietnamese tourists in Korea were duty-free shops, department stores, hospitals, and cosmetics. In particular, in 2022, duty-free shops and department stores recorded the largest growth rates, increasing by 1837% and 400% respectively compared to the previous year.

As Vietnamese tourists’ card usage in domestic tourism continues to rise (308% increase in 2022 compared to the previous year, based on BC Card’s acquisition amount), there is an analysis that expanding domestic merchants accepting Vietnamese local cards is necessary.

Woo Sang-hyun, Head of the New Finance Research Institute (Vice President) at BC Card, stated, "Domestic consumption by Vietnamese tourists increased by 192% in the first quarter compared to the previous year, and since a large number of Vietnamese tourists are expected to visit Korea this year, an increase in sales from the merchant side is also anticipated."

[Photo by BC Card]

He added, "BC Card will do its best to expand payment infrastructure so that foreign tourists can conveniently use the payment methods they use in their home countries while in Korea."

Meanwhile, in October last year, BC Card completed the network connection between Korea and Vietnam to allow Vietnamese tourists to use the Vietnamese 'NAPAS card' at domestic merchants. NAPAS is a large state-owned payment network operator with 48 member banks in Vietnam and has issued over 100 million proprietary brand cards. If smooth domestic approvals are possible, it is expected to contribute to the expansion of sales in the domestic tourism industry.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.