Mobile payments overtake card transactions

A S&P Global Market Intelligence report said on Tuesday that mobile-based payments in the country will be resilient and overtake card payments. The report also stated that covid-19 induced economic slowdown is likely to act as a hurdle in the rapid rise of cashless payments this year.

S&P Global Market Intelligence’s 2020 India Mobile Payments Market Report pointed out that India’s push towards cashless payments accelerated in 2019. It added that card and mobile payments as a percentage of GDP rose to 20% in the October-December quarter, from 135 in the same quarter a year ago. Meanwhile, mobile payments initiated by payment apps comprising account-to-account transfers and payments made from stored-value accounts jumped 163% to US$ 287 billion in 2019. On the other hand, there was only a 24% rise in point-of-sale transactions completed using debit and credit cards, including online and in apps.

“While a large number of transactions handled by payment apps include peer-to-peer transactions, mobile phone account recharges and utility bills, mobile payments are increasingly becoming a popular payment choice for retail transactions at the point of sale and online,” the report said.