Both EMV chip card issuance and EMV chip-based transactions now exceed 50% worldwide

Aggregated data published by EMVCo shows that by the end of 2017, 54.6% of all cards issued globally were EMV®-enabled. The number of EMV payment cards in worldwide circulation increased by 1 billion over the previous 12 months to a total of 7.1 billion. The data demonstrates that 63.7% of all card-present transactions conducted across the world between January and December 2017 used EMV chip technology, increasing from 52.4% in 2016.

„Given the dynamic nature of some regions, more recent data is likely to reflect higher overall adoption rates and transaction volumes than the total for 2017.”, according to the press release.

“Both EMV chip card issuance and EMV chip transactions surpassing 50% globally is testament to the increasing maturity of the worldwide infrastructure, and a significant milestone for the payments community,” comments Jack Pan, EMVCo Executive Committee Chair. “EMVCo continues to work closely with payment stakeholders to evolve the EMV Specifications to provide a secure, interoperable foundation for emerging technologies across face-to-face and remote environments.”

Regional EMV chip card adoption rate: Africa and the Middle East – 74.8%, Asia Pacific – 45.7%, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean – 85.7%, Europe Zone 1 – 84.4%, Europe Zone 2 – 71.4%, United States – 58.5%.

Percentage of card-present transactions that are EMV: Africa and the Middle East – 90.9%, Asia Pacific – 54.4%, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean – 88.5%, Europe Zone 1 – 98.6%, Europe Zone 2 – 90.4%, United States – 41.2%.

Data collection:
Data represents the most accurate possible data that could be obtained by American Express, Discover, JCB, Mastercard, UnionPay and Visa during the noted period. The transaction data reflects an average of 12 months’ data as reported by all members to take into consideration seasonal variations. To qualify as an ‘EMV transaction’, both the card and terminal used during a transaction must be EMV-enabled. Data is reported from the acquirer perspective. These figures do not include offline transactions, ‘on us’ transactions (defined as a transaction handled exclusively by another processor) and/or transactions processed by non-EMVCo member institutions, such as national payment networks.

About EMVCo:
EMVCo is the global technical body that facilitates the worldwide interoperability and acceptance of secure payment transactions by managing and evolving the EMV Specifications and related testing processes. EMV is a technology toolbox that enables globally interoperable secure payments across face-to-face and remote environments. EMVCo is collectively owned by American Express, Discover, JCB, Mastercard, UnionPay and Visa, and focuses on the technical advancement of the EMV Specifications.