Consumers take to contactless payments, Visa figures show

Irish consumers have embraced contactless payments, with one in every seven Visa transactions now being conducted this way, latest figures from the payment provider show.

Figures from Visa Europe show that Irish consumers are also some of the card savvy customers in Europe, with over €1 in every €3 spent in Ireland now transacted with a card, as consumers increasingly move away from cheques and cash to card payments. Back in 2012, this figure was as low as €1 in every €7, while across Europe, just €1 in every €5.70 spent was done on a card.

Overall, Irish consumers spent a record €31.7 billion on Visa cards, be they debit, credit or prepaid, in 2015, up by 12 per cent on the prior year. The number of transactions also rose in the year, up by 16 per cent to 584 million. The increase was driven by a lower average transaction value, which fell by 4 per cent, as consumers opted to pay with a card for smaller items.

Contactless payments now account for one in every seven Visa card transaction , with two contactless payments a second transacted across the country.

“While we have had a strong year, the truth is that the cashless payment journey has only just begun and our focus now is to engage and partner with businesses of all sizes to build propositions that will serve their customers and increase the appeal of Visa payments – making life a touch easier,” Philip Konopik, Visa Europe’s Ireland country manager said.

Last October the threshold for contactless payments was increased from €15 to €30, facilitating its use, while in December the Government instituted a new regime cutting the cost of contactless transactions. However Conor Langford, director of strategic accounts, UK and Ireland, said it’s “still too early to say” the potential impact this may have on such payments.

Irish consumers are also spending more online, with ecommerce spending up by 17 per cent to €6.5 billion in 2015. Ecommerce spending now accounts for 21 per cent of all Visa transactions in Ireland.

Mobile payments

The coming year will see a big move towards mobile, as consumers and retailers increase their use of Visa cards, such as entering payment details into a mobile app like Hailo, or using contactless Visa cards for lunch.

“We will see a big evolution in 2016 around mobile,” Mr Koponik said.

With respect to the much heralded launch of mobile payments, such as those offered by Apple Pay and Google Wallet, Mr Langford said that the infrastructure is now in place for the provision of such services, but it's up to the product providers, such as Apple etc, to offer the service.

Last July,Apple Pay launched in the UK, and will go live in China on February 18th. Samsung has also been gearing up its payment service, with plans to launch Samsung Pay in the UK, Spain, China, Australia, Singapore, and Brazil later this year.

Europe

Across Europe, 2015 was the “most successful year ever” for Visa, Mr Langford said, with Visa processing 18.3 billion transactions and growing its revenues by 25 per cent to €2.1 billion. Visa Europe is to be acquired by Visa Inc, with the deal expected to close by the third quarter of 2016, creating a single global company.