Visa USA has reported that for the first time ever Americans spent more using their debit cards than they did using their credit cards.

According to the leading card brand, 2008 debit payment volume was $206 billion, compared with credit payments volume of $203 billion. Debit transactions were nearly 70% of U.S. transactions for the same time period, representing an increasingly larger portion of Visa's U.S. transactions, Visa added.

"In 2002, U.S. Visa debit transactions surpassed credit transactions for the first time, and now payments volume has also exceeded credit. This marks an important achievement for Visa, as we continue to advance migration to electronic payments from cash and checks," said Bill Sheedy, President for North America, Visa, Inc.

"For more than 20 years, Visa has championed the adoption of debit as a convenient and secure payment alternative for consumers and businesses. Now that cardholders can use Visa for almost every type of everyday spending-from taxis to grocery stores-the value of electronic payments over cash and checks is more clearly evident," Sheedy added.