Contactless payments, where you simply tap to pay with a contactless card, payment-enabled mobile or wearable device at a contactless-enabled checkout terminal, are taking parts of the world by storm. As the U.S. prepares to accelerate adoption of this fast, simple and secure way to pay, Visa is looking at its exponential growth globally.
„Our map and the numbers show a clear sign of what’s to come: By the end of 2018, Visa projects 50 percent of face-to-face transactions will occur at contactless-enabled merchant locations in the U.S. „, Visa Inc. says.
Romania has already achieved this level of penetration, one in two Visa card payments being „face to face” contactless transaction according to VisaNet statistics at Septembrie 2017. Romania seems to be a real leader in contactless adoption surpassing many other countries much more developed in terms of electronic payments usage. Looks like in Europe, only three countries (the Check Republic, Poland and Slovakia) have a better adoption than Romania (see the chart).
Here’s a closer look at trends in five markets around the world:
Australia – Aussies are big on tapping to pay with contactless cards, making it one of the largest contactless markets in the world. In fact, 92 percent of face-to-face Visa transactions in September used a contactless method of payment.
United Kingdom – For the rush of commuters in the UK, the convenience and speed of contactless payments makes perfect sense. Visa reports a 97 percent increase year-over-year for contactless transit transactions and Transport for London (TfL), which accounts for most transit transactions, has seen more than 1 billion Visa contactless journeys since launch.
Hong Kong – Parts of Asia have experienced consistent growth in contactless transactions. In Hong Kong, for example, contactless face-to-face Visa transactions have tripled in the past 18 months and today, one in three face-to-face Visa transactions is made via a contactless payment.
Brazil – Contactless payments have made their way to Latin America too and local merchants are preparing for a surge. In Brazil, 70 percent of POS terminals accept contactless payments. The same level is also in Romania, according to NOCASH statistics.
Canada – The U.S.’s northern neighbor is already ahead of the contactless game. In Canada, Visa’s network processed 33 contactless transactions per second just in the month of September.
Source: Visa Inc.
Banking 4.0 – „how was the experience for you”
„So many people are coming here to Bucharest, people that I see and interact on linkedin and now I get the change to meet them in person. It was like being to the Football World Cup but this was the World Cup on linkedin in payments and open banking.”
Many more interesting quotes in the video below:
