The latest publication from the Hamburg-based market research company, yStats.com, titled “Asia-Pacific Online Payment Methods 2023,” offers valuable insights into the payment figures and trends in this vast region. The report highlights that the APAC region is taking the lead in adopting alternative payment methods, including digital wallets and real-time payments.
China and South Korea are among the countries moving towards a cashless society
According to the findings in the new yStats.com report, the adoption of digital payments in Asia-Pacific continues to grow. Card and mobile payments are on the rise throughout the region, bringing countries such as China and South Korea closer to becoming cashless societies. In contrast, the share of total payment transactions being made online in Thailand is estimated to surpass 90% in 2023. Japan, on the other hand, still sees a significant use of cash for daily purchases, though the share of Internet users in the country who use smartphone payments increased by around 5% between February 2022 and February 2023.
Mobile payment adoption is still growing, with mobile wallets among the top online payment methods
Mobile wallets are a dominant trend in the region, as outlined in the new yStats.com report. While preferences for payment methods vary in each country in the Asia-Pacific region, the growth of mobile payments is observed in many of them. China and India are leading the charge in the use of mobile wallets, with over 8 in 10 adults in China owning and using a mobile wallet. In India, the mobile wallet payment value is forecasted to increase at a double-digit CAGR between 2023 and 2027, with over 9 in 10 adults in the country owning a mobile wallet and using it in the past year.
Real-time payment adoption growing in the APAC region
Another emerging payment form in the Asia-Pacific region is real-time payments, as an increasing number of users seek to replace cash in their daily lives. The Asia-Pacific region is leading the real-time payment domain, with high adoption rates across various countries in the region. According to the new yStats.com publication, India is one of the leading countries in this field and is expected to witness significant growth in the number of real-time payment transactions by 2027, nearly tripling the 2022 figures. Hong Kong is also projected to triple its real-time payment transaction numbers by 2027, experiencing a mid-range double-digit CAGR from 2022.
