According to the Market Statsville Group (MSG), the global fuel card market size is expected to grow from USD 981.18 million in 2022 to USD 3,912.86 million by 2033, growing at a CAGR of 13.4% from 2023 to 2033. Fuel Cards give several benefits to fleet vendors by collecting low-level data on vehicle miles, gallons of fuel consumed, and the need for vehicle service. To boost fleet management productivity, fuel card service providers have begun to include telematics interfaces and extensive reporting capabilities as regular product offerings. Moreover, Fuel Cards come in a variety of forms, including branded Fuel Cards, universal Fuel Cards, and merchant cards. Merchant Fuel Cards are expected to expand at the fastest pace over the projection period. Moreover, a lack of security measures stifles industry expansion. Moreover, the integration of telematics with Fuel Cards, as well as an increase in demand for Fuel Cards from emerging countries, are likely to present attractive potential for the market.

Definition of the Global Fuel Card Market

A fuel card, sometimes known as a fleet card, is a payment card that is commonly used to pay for gasoline, diesel, and other fuels at petrol stations. Fleet cards can also be used to pay for vehicle maintenance and charges at the discretion of the fleet owner or manager. The majority of gasoline cards are charge cards. Fleet cards are unusual in that they provide quick and thorough reporting. Fleet cards allow fleet owners/managers to receive real-time information and establish purchase controls with their cards, allowing them to remain on top of all corporate spending. Fleet cards can be offered by firms that specialize in supplying gasoline cards, such as Edenred, WEX Inc., Comdata, FleetCards USA, Petrol Plus Region, Fuelman, and others, in addition to oil corporations like Shell, Chevron, and ExxonMobil. Furthermore, several rideshare businesses provide fleet cards to its drivers, allowing them to have gas money debited from their earnings.

COVID-19 Impact on the Global Fuel Card Market

The Mexican fuel card market is expected to witness a decline of approx. XX% in 2020, post the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The COVID-19 has adversely affected the Mexican fuel card market during the first half of the year 2020, due to complete global lock-down and suspended travel, which results in decreasing fuel consumption, and a sharp decline in demand for fuel card services.

The rising corona-virus cases had compelled people to stay inside houses, offices were closed, and people were doing work from home. The factories and agricultural activities were also initially completely closed, hence fuel requirements declined drastically, which directly affects the fuel card market. Mexico's GDP depends majorly on tourism and due to COVID-19 tours and travel industries were on a halt, which reduce the fuel consumption and negatively affected Mexico's fuel card market as well.

Global Fuel Card Market Dynamics

Drivers: Rising demand for fleet management

Fuel cards allow advanced tracking of fleet expenses and fleet efficiency by tracking the mileage and fuel consumption of vehicles in a fleet on a real-time basis. This will promote the growth of the fuel card market in the Mexican region during the forecasting period. Fleet operators use fuel cards for costs such as truck maintenance, truck repair, fuel, truck cleaning, and rental of replacement vehicles, among others. Data captured from a fuel card includes odometer reading, fuel grades, fuel product and quantity, vehicle ID, driver ID, and tax information. It also captures details of the transaction such as time-rich replenishment, location, amount of expense, and date support for fleet managers.

All of this improved data enables more comprehensive reports, which can be used by fleet operators to identify problem areas such as fraudulent transactions by truckers or truck drivers with lower fuel efficiency. Thus, fuel maps provide a comprehensive view of vehicle operating costs and driver's behaviour, allowing fleet managers to have the comprehensive monitoring and trends needed to analyse fleet shortages. The above-mentioned key indicators are expected to drive the adoption of fuel cards by fleet operators and contribute to the growth of the fuel card market in Mexico during the forecasting period.

Restraints: Introduction of alternative products or services

The introduction of e-vehicles and digital solutions will hinder the growth of the Mexican fuel card market. Government initiatives and incentive plans for the promotion of e-vehicle and major players offering e-vehicle service stations, in the region is a major hurdle in the growth of the fuel card market in the Mexican region. For instance, Royal Dutch Shell PLC company offers e-vehicles cards and service stations, which will hamper the growth of the market.

Various companies are adopting digitalization and offering digital user-oriented solutions coupled with biometrics for more security will be a potential roadblock in the growth of the fuel card market. For instance, in February 2019, Edenred Mexico launched G500 Fleet, its user-oriented payment solution in partnership with the service-station consortium, G500. This payment platform manages the fuel expenses easily for companies owing to the Ticket Car technology and platform.

Opportunities: Introduction of new technologies and techniques in fuel card market

The Increasing digitization and the adoption of new technologies and AI are improving offered services. It also allows users to track expenses and analyse them for better management and cost savings. Digitization is paving the way for the growth of the fuel card market in the region of Mexico. It analyses fuel consumption patterns and allows users to monitor the fleet.

 For instance, fuel card companies offer mobile phone applications to track fuel card usage, nearby fuel station or pay-at-the-pump options, travel plans, post-paid and prepaid, and many other features which increase the demand for the fuel card market during the forecast period.

The advanced analysis software provides graphical and chart-based analysis of fuel usage and allows users or managers to track key metric performance. The software offers route tracking, analysis of fuel consumption patterns, budget management, cost reduction solutions, and other services. It also reduces card fraud, card misuse, and detect anomalies, among others. This will enhance operations and increase fuel card market growth in the Mexican region during the forecast period.

Scope of the Global Fuel Card Market

The study categorizes the fuel card market based on type, and application area at the regional and global levels.

By Type Outlook (Sales, USD Million, 2019-2033)

• Branded
• Universal
• Merchant

By Application Outlook (Sales, USD Million, 2019-2033)

• Fuel Refill
• Parking
• Vehicle Service
• Toll Charge
• Others

By Region Outlook (Sales, USD Million, 2019-2033)

• North America
  • US
  • Canada
  • Mexico
• Europe
  • Germany
  • Italy
  • France
  • UK
  • Spain
  • Poland
  • Russia
  • The Netherlands
  • Norway
  • Czech Republic
  • Rest of Europe
• Asia Pacific
  • China
  • Japan
  • India
  • South Korea
  • Indonesia
  • Malaysia
  • Thailand
  • Singapore
  • Australia & New Zealand
  • Rest of Asia Pacific
• South America
  • Brazil
  • Argentina
  • Colombia
  • Rest of South America
• The Middle East & Africa
  • Saudi Arabia
  • UAE
  • South Africa
  • Northern Africa
  • Rest of MEA

Universal segment accounts for the largest market share by type

Based on the type, the market is divided into branded, universal, and merchant. The universal segment is expected to dominate the market share in 2022 in the global fuel card market. The universal segment currently dominates the market share in the fuel card market. This segment's growth has been fueled by factors such as high efficiency in providing universal coverage, actionable insights, level 3 data collection, online reporting tools, and demand for sophisticated solutions. Nevertheless, due to unmet demand from developing nations and initiatives from industry leaders, the merchant Fuel Cards category is predicted to increase at the fastest rate throughout the projection period. As a result, this aspect is projected to boost market expansion even more.

Europe is expected to witness the largest market share by Region

Based on the regions, the global fuel card market has been segmented across Europe, North America, the Middle East & Africa, Asia-Pacific, and South America. Europe is projected to account for the highest market share in 2022. Businesses in the region are implementing cutting-edge features that benefit customers. The expansion of the corporate sector, together with the vast number of fleet management organizations across Europe, is supplementing the region's corporate end-user market.

The Asia Pacific market is being pushed by the region's increased use of prepaid and contactless technologies. India and China are the world's fastest-growing economies, and demand for gasoline cards is likely to skyrocket in the coming years.

Competitive Landscape: Global Fuel Card Market

The fuel card market is a significant competitor, and extremely cutthroat in the sector are using strategies including product launches, partnerships, acquisitions, agreements, and growth to enhance their market positions. Most sector businesses focus on increasing their operations worldwide and cultivating long-lasting partnerships.

Major key players in the global fuel card market are:

• Shell Group
• BP plc.
• Total Fuel Card WEX Inc.
• Caltex
• Puma Energy
• Engen Petroleum Ltd.
• Absa Bank Limited
• Standard Bank
• First National Bank (FNB)
• Company 11
• Company 12
• Company 13
• Company 14
• Company 15

Recent Development

• In November 2021, Multi Service Technology Solutions, Inc. acquired MSTS Payments, LLC and the Multi Service Fuel Card business to Shell Oil Corporation. The purchase is anticipated to enhance the expansion of Shell's worldwide commercial cards business.
• In October 2019, WEX Inc. entered the UAE market by forming a collaboration with MasterCard. The UAE Central Bank has authorized MasterCard.

Key Issues Addressed

• What is the market size by various segmentation of the fuel card by region and its respective countries?
• What are the customer buying behavior, key takeaways, and Porter's 5 forces of the fuel card market?
• What are the key opportunities and trends for manufacturers involved in the fuel card supply chain?
• What are the fundamental dynamics (drivers, restraints, opportunities, and challenges) of the market?
• What and how regulations, schemes, patents, and policies are impacting the growth of the market?
• What are the upcoming technological solutions influencing market trends? How will existing companies adapt to the new change in technology?
• The market player positioning, top winning strategies by years, company product developments, and launches will be?
• How has COVID-19 impacted the demand and sales of fuel card in the global market? Also, the expected BPS drop or rise count of the market and market predicted recovery period.
• Detailed analysis of the competitors and their latest launch, and what are the prominent startups introduced in the target market? Also, detailed company profiling of 25+ leading and prominent companies in the market.