As we come to the end of a big year in payments, London & Zurich take a brief look back at what was new in 2015, and what is coming in 2016.
What was Big in 2015?
You can’t look back at 2015 without considering the importance of contactless and mobile payments. Five years ago, the volume of mCommerce payments was at £33billion (at current exchange rates), in 2015, the figure was over £280billion, an astonishing growth that represents just how far mobile pay tech has come. As such, mobile technology payment is having to adapt and evolve in order to meet the growing consumer demands. Digital giants such as Google, Facebook and Amazon made huge strides, with social commerce transactions reaching well into the billions, and rising by more than 25% year on year. As such, it will come as little surprise that giants such as these are looking to enter the digital payments market in the future, and banks have already begun to take note. With automated payment technology growing in importance, security has become a real consideration for both customers and regulators. Data breaches are inevitably more common and a greater worry. As such more robust technology is now being deployed regularly to keep payment card data safe. Throughout the year, and leading up to the New Year, the payments industry has been through a bit of a shakeup, with a number of new technologies being introduced. Some of the key introductions to date have included.
- Smart ATMs
- Mobile Payments
- Contactless Payments
- Pay by Touch
What 2016 Has in Store
2016 looks likely to see a number of trends continuing from 2015. Most importantly, 2016 appears to be the defining year for mobile payment providers. Apple Pay is planning a major European launch, which effectively could seriously shake up the world of fragmented mobile payment in dramatic fashion. Security is also expected to have a strong influence on the payment industry in 2016, with tokenisation and biometric authentication playing large roles. Perhaps most importantly, cash payments seem to be on a downward slide. From an international perspective, Sweden represent a good example of cash usage falling dramatically, with it now being almost impossible to use cash to pay for bus tickets. As to whether cash’s end is truly in sight is hard to judge with Germany suggesting that 80% of retail sales still being conducted via cash transactions. Automated payment methods are definitely on the rise, and cash is undoubtedly on the decline, but to what extent is at this point, unclear. Everyone at London & Zurich wishes you a happy and prosperous New Year. If you would like to discuss Direct Debits or Payment Gateway solutions with the London & Zurich team, you can get in touch with us on 0121 234 7999, or you can use our contact form.
