The number of debit cards issued in South Korea surpassed 100 million in the first 11 months of the year as a growing number of consumers used them because they offer more tax benefits than credit cards, industry sources said Wednesday.

The number of debit cards issued in the January-November period reached 100.2 million, up 1.46 percent from 98.7 million for all of last year, according to the sources.

The increase was attributed to greater tax incentives provided by debit cards. The income tax deduction rate of such cards currently stands at 30 percent, while the figure amounts to 25 percent for credit cards.

The rise also came as the government made efforts to invigorate the issuance of debit cards by extending incentives in order to tackle the country‘s mounting household debt.

Debit cards accounted for 46 percent of the total card issuance through November this year, while 116 million credit cards were issued over the cited period.

The issuance of debit cards is likely to surpass credit cards down the road, as the number of dormant credit cards reached 23.8 million as of end-October, according to the sources. Dormant credit cards refer to accounts without transaction records during a 12-month period. (Yonhap News)