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Sinterklaas started his shopping early this year

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Sinterklaas started his festive shopping earlier this year than in previous years. Over the seven days up to and including Sinterklaas Day, he paid by debit or credit card in physical shops between 5% more often, on Tuesday, Sunday and yesterday, and 15% more often, on Thursday, than on ordinary weekdays in the recent past. In online shops, he paid by credit card or iDEAL between the usual number of times and 10% more often from one day to the next. He did spend a comparatively higher amount online, estimated at between 10% and 20% more per day than usual.

Sinterklaas sits behind a laptop on a red tablecloth and looks at the screen in surprise in a bright studio.

During the entire week before Sinterklaas, an estimated 115 million payments were made by debit and credit card at points of sale, with a total value of more than €2.9 billion. The number of online payments made by credit card and iDEAL was more than three-quarters lower, but their value was almost the same as in physical shops. The busiest point-of-sale period since Black Friday was last Saturday at around 2:15 pm, with roughly 840 debit card payments per second. Later that afternoon, from 4 pm, the Dutch national team played at the FIFA World Cup.

Compared with last year, electronic payments in physical shops were roughly 20% higher over the entire Sinterklaas week, with a total value around 15% higher. In online shops, the volume and value of payments by credit card and iDEAL were about 5% higher than last year. Coronavirus restrictions were in force around Sinterklaas last year, which meant that people bought less than usual in physical shops and more online.

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