26-11-2010, 07:39 AM
Imprudent spending continues!
Nov 26, 2010
More above age 50 failing to pay credit card bills on time
BUSINESSMAN Louis Tan sometimes puts his company's bills on his own credit card, but does not always pay up on time due to the large sums involved.
Mr Tan, 54, told The Straits Times: 'I sometimes charge $3,000 to $5,000 to the card a month for things like overseas trips because my company's credit lines are stretched. But because customers pay me late, sometimes I don't get to pay everything back on time.'
Mr Tan, who runs a two-man company importing dry goods, is part of the group of people aged above 50 who are increasingly not paying their credit card bills on time. According to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), this group of older 'revolvers' has grown in the past five years.
In August 2005, they made up 17.71 per cent of the total number of people who did not pay their balances in full. This proportion grew to 20.75 per cent in August this year, said the MAS in its latest annual Financial Stability Review.
Similarly, over-50s also accounted for a greater proportion of people who did not pay their debt for three months or more in a row. They formed 20.9 per cent of this group in August, up from 19.01 per cent in December 2005.
People in their 20s are another group increasingly rolling over their debts. They accounted for 11.7 per cent of credit card debt revolvers this year, up from 10.88 per cent in 2005.
In all, the MAS said there is now a greater percentage of frequent revolvers. They accounted for 25.3 per cent of all credit card holders in August, up from 24.9 per cent last December.
AARON LOW
Nov 26, 2010
More above age 50 failing to pay credit card bills on time
BUSINESSMAN Louis Tan sometimes puts his company's bills on his own credit card, but does not always pay up on time due to the large sums involved.
Mr Tan, 54, told The Straits Times: 'I sometimes charge $3,000 to $5,000 to the card a month for things like overseas trips because my company's credit lines are stretched. But because customers pay me late, sometimes I don't get to pay everything back on time.'
Mr Tan, who runs a two-man company importing dry goods, is part of the group of people aged above 50 who are increasingly not paying their credit card bills on time. According to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), this group of older 'revolvers' has grown in the past five years.
In August 2005, they made up 17.71 per cent of the total number of people who did not pay their balances in full. This proportion grew to 20.75 per cent in August this year, said the MAS in its latest annual Financial Stability Review.
Similarly, over-50s also accounted for a greater proportion of people who did not pay their debt for three months or more in a row. They formed 20.9 per cent of this group in August, up from 19.01 per cent in December 2005.
People in their 20s are another group increasingly rolling over their debts. They accounted for 11.7 per cent of credit card debt revolvers this year, up from 10.88 per cent in 2005.
In all, the MAS said there is now a greater percentage of frequent revolvers. They accounted for 25.3 per cent of all credit card holders in August, up from 24.9 per cent last December.
AARON LOW