Mobile Payments to Reach Almost $1 Trillion Value

Worldwide mobile payment transactions are projected to increase in value over the next three years at a rate of 97% a year and in  a few years, should reach a value of nearly a trillion US dollars – $945 billion, to be exact.

According to a KPMG report released early April this year, this growth is to be fuelled by sales in near-field technology devices, that is, smartphones and tablets that, upon close contact with a store’s scanners, can be used to make immediate electronic payments. Another factor will be the market’s growing attraction for the “always on, always fast, and always accessible” shopping experience of couch commerce.

More and more, we are seeing mobile commerce’s growing acceptance as an alternative to cash or credit card transactions. Two reasons for these could be (1) the expansion of the smartphone market and (2) the retailers’ recognition of their need to adapt to changing times.

In 2011, smartphone shipments accounted for nearly a third of all mobile phone sales. That’s a significant growth from the mere 15% that they accounted for in 2009. KPMG’s report also reveals that by now, 21% of retailers already recognize mobile payment capability as a “key enabler” in their business. Only 2% of the surveyed organizations believed that mobile commerce will have no effect on their organization.

This infographic from IMRG and eDigital Research below contains some great stats on m-commerce growth from 2009 to 2012. Even though the details are specific to UK market, the trends can be extended to entire western hemisphere at the minimum.