The smartphone has become our new wallet
Once again this year, the number of mobile payments made with Payconiq and Bancontact continues to climb steeply. Between January and August, Belgians pulled out their smartphones to pay for purchases 37% more often than in the same period last year. The growing popularity of making mobile payments via Payconiq at summer festivals partly explains this success. In August, we paid for the first time over 2 million times by scanning a QR code for our purchases made in-store and at festivals.
The rise of digital payments continues
Digital payments are very popular in our country. More and more Belgians are abandoning coins and banknotes in favor of their bank card or smartphone. This is shown by the latest Digital Payment Barometer, a study we conducted together with the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and several other payment players.
Paying Attention, a podcast series that explores how new forms of payment are reshaping and changing Belgian society
Paying by card, contactless payment, online payment or mobile payment. In our society, the movement towards new forms of payment is irreversibly set in motion. In collaboration with Business AM, we created ‘Paying Attention’. A podcast series that explores how new forms of payment are reshaping and changing Belgian society.
Offering a form of electronic payment will soon become mandatory for companies
According to Belgian legislation, companies will be required to offer at least one form of electronic payment to their customers as of July 1, 2022. Since the start of the corona crisis, digital payments have become more relevant than ever in our country. Belgians have drastically changed their payment habits: both the smartphone and the contactless bank card are gaining ground as preferred payment methods.
62% more mobile payments in 2021
Belgians have adopted a totally different way of paying for purchases since the start of the Covid-19 crisis. That’s clearly demonstrated by the latest stats from Bancontact Payconiq Company. Payments made with smartphones and contactless bank cards continued to gain significant ground in 2021. The number of mobile payments rose by no less than 62% while, for the first time ever, we paid for our in-store purchases more often by tapping our card than by inserting our card into the payment terminal. And Bancontact Payconiq Company says that QR codes will give mobile payments an additional boost in the coming year.
