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Monthly payment rates, the amount that cardholders pay on their credit card debt, soared in January to a record level, approaching 20%. The big increase was primarily driven by higher minimum payments and to a lesser extent by rising interest rates. Among credit card-backed bonds, the monthly payment rate hit 19.97% in January, compared to 18.90% in the prior month and 17.70% one-year ago. According to FitchRatings, the payment rate averaged 18.6% during 2005. Five years ago the monthly payment rate hovered around 15%. FitchRatings also says a growing dependency on short-term teaser rates and low-rate balance transfer offers may also be contributing to the higher MPR.