Bangkok--5 Apr--Spark Communications
Thais lose almost 2,000 baht every year through loose change and unused currencies
Results from the Visa Payment Attitudes Study[1]show that peoplelose an average of US$365 every yearbecause of cashleft forgotten in the house or car, or unused foreign currency from a holiday or business trip. This seemingly small amount that averages a dollar a day is actually the equivalent of the cost of 6.5 grams of gold.
Busy lifestyles mean consumers often lose track of the little things around them — such as loose change. They are leaving an average of US$80 lying around in cars, homes and offices unclaimed at any one time. Among all the surveyed markets, the Japanese have an astounding US$337 in loose change just lying around forgotten and unused. Indonesians are the most frugal leaving only US$21 lying around at any one time.
Returning home from vacation with a pocket full of coins and foreign notes is also a common occurrence. According to the study, people are bringing home on average US$285 in unused foreign currency[2].
Thais lose an average of US$66 (THB 1,980) per year, resulted from US$42 (THB 1,260) of loose change and US$ 24 (THB 720) of unused foreign currency.
“Keeping track of cash can be a hassle, especially with today’s busy — and increasingly globe-trotting -lifestyle. We’ve long known that carrying cash can be inconvenient and unreliable, and we now know from this research that consumers are out of pocket by using cash too! Thais need to be aware of the amount of money that they can lose and be more reliant on their Visa cards when they travel,” explainsSomboonKrobteeranon, Visa Country Manager, Myanmar and Thailand.
The study results showed that, on average, consumers in the region own two debit cards, but it also revealed that awareness for using debit cards abroad is low, with only 42 percent being aware that they can be used around the world. However debits cards, and in particular Visa debit cards, are widely accepted across the globe and can be used in-store, for shopping online and even - for that purchase that really needs cash- for withdrawing cash from foreign ATMs.
[1]The study surveyed 5,641 people in 11 markets across Asia Pacific (Australia, India, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand), Russia, South Africa and UAE. Fieldwork was undertaken during August 2012.
[2]Foreign currencies given as tips in airports and/or misplaced