Despite Debt, Consumers Spend Big With Credit Cards

In spite of the a number of financial ailments, including debt, unemployment and bankruptcies, consumers helped credit card companies post big fourth quarter profits by increasing spending.

This week, Visa and MasterCard, two of the nation's largest payment processors not only saw overall revenue increases but also an uptick in the number of transactions on their networks.

MasterCard's profits rose 41 percent, spurred on by a 6.3 percent increase in the amount of credit card transactions it handled. In total, the lender processed more than 6.2 billion transactions during the three-month period that ended on December 31, The Wall Street Journal reports.

By comparison, Visa saw a 15 percent increase in transactions on its network, bringing its total to 13 billion, according to the company's latest regulatory filing. Its total income for the quarter was $884 million.

The results surpassed expectations, but were in line with recent reports from other major credit card lenders. Many consumers had pledged to switch to cash and check rather than credit and debit for their holiday purchases; however, the recent data suggests many did not stick tightly to
their prior declarations.