Pay with the app instead of notes
Percentage of smartphone payments doubles
Mr. and Mrs. Swiss are using their smartphones more and more often when paying on the Internet and in shops. The share of payment apps in all cashless payments rose to more than seven percent in the previous year.
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More and more people are paying with the app instead of cash.
Smartphone apps such as Twint and Co. are becoming increasingly important for cashless payment transactions in Switzerland. According to data from the largest payment processor Worldline, the share of smartphone purchases was 7.2 percent in the past year, compared to 4.4 percent in the previous year. Since 2019, the proportion has doubled almost every year, as can be seen from the “Monitoring Consumption Switzerland” published by Worldline in cooperation with the University of St. Gallen.
In fact, the share of cell phone payments in all cashless transactions is likely to be even larger. Because with Worldline data, only payments with Twint, Alipay and Wechat Pay are considered mobile payments. Payments with Apple Pay, Samsung Pay or Google Pay, on the other hand, are recorded as credit card transactions.
In addition, numerous TWINT payments – for example at parking meters, in certain online shops or at market stalls and farm shops – are not made via a payment processor at all, which should push the proportion of mobile phone payments in all cashless transactions even further upwards.
Older people more open to smartphone payments
Twint also confirmed that growth would continue at the request of the AWP news agency. According to provisional figures, the number of commercial transactions has roughly doubled again in 2022.
“The corona pandemic has largely ensured that people who are afraid of new technologies have overcome them,” said Marcel Stadelmann, lecturer at the ZHAW School of Management and Law and co-author of the Swiss Payment Monitor. Older people in particular were increasingly open to making payments with their smartphones.
Popular: Transfer money with apps
Stadelmann sees the greatest growth in long-distance business. For example, online purchases are increasingly being made directly on the mobile device or at least paid for using it. “While mobile payment has grown significantly in online retail in recent years, more and more people are now using their cell phones to pay at the checkout in stores,” added TWINT spokesman Ettore Trento.
In addition, smartphone apps for transfers between private individuals are very popular, Stadelmann said. According to Twint, these account for a third of all transactions.
“If you look at the retail sector, classic supermarkets are clearly ahead,” Trento added. According to Stadelmann, use in the areas of ticket purchase, parking and transport, as well as with machines, has increased significantly in recent years. (AWP/nim)