A recent study released by Merchant Machine shows that mobile wallets are likely to hit 4.4 billion by 2024. The findings indicate that the global pandemic pushed up the popularity of digital wallets. The numbers are expected to grow further to 51.70% by 2024 from 44.50% in 2020.
50% of the Global Population to Use Mobile Wallets by 2024
Merchant Machine has established that mobile wallets have become very popular since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the trend is expected to continue. Researchers established that starting from 2015, revenue from mobile wallet apps grew three fold, and by 2022 it could reach a record high of USD 1,639.5 trillion.
According to the Merchant Machine’s study details, safety and security were the primary drivers of the fast adoption of mobile wallets. The convenience from digital wallets, fast penetration of smartphones, and growing digitization trends, also accelerated the popularity of mobile wallets. The report also explained the leading mobile payments in 2022.
Alipay is the most used digital wallet with 650 million users, while Wechat comes second with 550 million in 2022. Apple Pay (507 million), Google Pay (421 million), and PayPal (377 million) follow in that order. Debit cards, credit cards, and bank transfers use dropped, but there was significant growth in the use of buy now pay later (BNPL) schemes across the globe.
China Leading in the Adoption of Mobile Wallets
When it comes to the adoption of mobile wallets based on individual countries, China comes at the top. It is followed by Denmark, India, South Korea, Sweden, and the United States, in that order. The research explained that the use of contactless payments in China is driven by the society using tech solutions in almost every aspect of their lifestyles.
The report indicated that the growth in the adoption of mobile wallets is not expected to slow down any time soon, and by 2024, it will reach half of the world population or 4.4 billion. This supports another research done by Gartner, which showed that about 20% of the large companies will adopt digital currencies for their payments in 2024.
