yStats.com, a leading Hamburg-based desk research specialist for online business intelligence, has released a new market report, entitled “Global Alternative Online Payment Methods 2020 And COVID-19’s Impact.” The publication reveals the top alternatives to credit cards used by online shoppers worldwide and contains the latest updates on the effect of the pandemic on the digital payments landscape.
Alternative payment methods outpace credit cards in selected markets
Although credit cards dominate in many of the top B2C E-Commerce markets worldwide, they face strong competition from alternative payment methods, led by digital wallets. Third-party payment services such as PayPal, AliPay, WeChat Pay, already outrank bank cards by online shoppers’ preference in countries including China, Indonesia, Germany, Italy, and others. Besides E-Wallets, other popular alternative payment means in global E-Commerce include cash on delivery, bank transfer, and payment by invoice, the yStats.com report reveals. Furthermore, an emerging payment method is Buy Now Pay Later, which already reached millions of users in Australia, the USA and the UK.
New online payment methods are used during COVID-19
At the time of the Coronavirus outbreak, homebound consumers have turned to E-Commerce websites for buying groceries, daily necessities and other items. According to a recent international survey cited in the yStats.com report, the overall ranking of the payment methods used by online shoppers during the COVID-19 pandemic remained largely unchanged compared to 2019. Nevertheless, as a double-digit share of consumers bought online for the first time amid the outbreak, and a proportion of experienced online buyers purchased from new E-Commerce websites, they also tried out new payment methods. Among alternative payment means, digital wallet was the leading new payment method used.
Global online shoppers prefer secure and convenient payment methods
Among the top criteria that guide online shoppers’ choice of a payment method during the coronavirus is security and fraud protection. Other important considerations include cost of use and the ease of getting a refund. Offering the right payment methods mix is likewise important, as one in five global online shoppers would abandon their purchase upon not finding their preferred payment mean at the checkout, according to a survey referenced in the yStats.com report.
