TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Thirty-two credit card issuers reported NT$395.3 billion (US$11.99 billion) in credit card spending in February, the Financial Supervisory Commission said Thursday.

The figure marked a NT$56.7 billion increase from January, up 16.75% month-on-month and 22.84% year-on-year, driven by Lunar New Year in February, per a press release. The FSC also reported 58.75 million cards in circulation.

CTBC Bank topped all issuers with NT$70.55 billion in transactions, per CNA. Cathay United Bank ranked second with NT$69.74 billion, followed by Taipei Fubon Bank at NT$52.26 billion, E.Sun Bank at NT$44.61 billion, and Taishin Bank at NT$42.84 billion.

FSC Banking Bureau official Wang Yun-chung (王允中) explained at a press briefing that the surge in February’s credit card spending was mainly due to the Lunar New Year falling in January, with many transactions recorded in February.

Regarding card issuance, the FSC said CTBC Bank led institutions with 74,221 new cards, followed by E.Sun Bank at 56,782. However, CTBC Bank also had the highest number of deactivated cards at 99,238, which FSC officials attributed to the bank clearing inactive or bad accounts.

Meanwhile, in March, financial markets were unsettled over tariff concerns, per CNA. Fourteen listed financial holding firms posted NT$38.61 billion in after-tax profit for the month, down 34.65% year-on-year.

Among those, only Cathay Financial, CTBC Financial, Yuanta Financial, E.SUN Financial, and Taiwan Cooperative Financial Holding recorded higher profits in March than in February.

Taipei Fubon Bank earned NT$3.07 billion in March and NT$10.12 billion in Q1, both all-time highs for the respective periods. Cathay Financial followed with NT$9.84 billion in March and NT$32.12 billion for Q1.