Top 10 Countries Leading in Real-Time Payments

Top 10 Countries Leading in Real-Time Payments
Digital payments by country

With the advent of cheap, a large number of countries are trying to go cashless. Going full digital will also help Government track their money better. Almost every country has devised its own payment app. After the pandemic, there were about 70 billion digital transactions that happened in 2020 alone. A number of people have now turned to online shopping at present. This is why in every country there was a surge in digital shoppers. Globally, the total transaction value in Digital Payments is expected to reach US$8,562 Billion in 2022.

But what is real-time payments you may ask, Realtime payments are platforms or networks via which online payments can be made 24/7.

So, let's look at the Countries with the most real-time payments. These countries have innovated significantly in their digital payment space. This has enabled the common man to make transactions digitally.

Real-time transactions of different Countries in 2020
Real-time transactions of different Countries in 2020

Countries Leading in Digital Payments

  1. India
  2. China
  3. South Korea
  4. Thailand
  5. United Kingdom
  6. Nigeria
  7. Japan
  8. Brazil
  9. USA
  10. Mexico

India

Digital Payments App usage in India
Digital Payments App usage in India

India has the most real-time payments. It seems that India has successfully designed payment technologies that can be used by the common man. India has a number of apps that are reliable for digital payment.

Companies like Paytm and Google Pay have pioneered digital payment in India. They have made digital payment accessible to the common man. The main game changer was UPI. This is what led to such high digital transactions. Paytm has also enabled QR-based payment for any kind of small business. This is why anyone could digitally pay anybody. After the pandemic, there was a significant rise in online shopping and which gave rise to digital contactless payments. Digital transactions grew close to 90% in the three years from FY19 to FY21. The value of digital payments in India in 2021 was 300 billion. In the financial year 2021, around 44 billion digital payments were recorded across India. Total transaction value in the Digital Payments segment is projected to reach US$142 billion in 2022. Market experts and statistics predict that it will grow to reach 1 trillion by 2026.


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China

Digital payments apps popularity in China
Digital payments apps popularity in China

China has a huge amount of online transactions and it has a number of online payment app like Alipay, Wechat Pay, ApplePay, Tenpay, and others. AliPay and wechat pay are most widely used for digital transactions than any other company. A lot of businesses fully transact digitally. The businesses which operate with AliPay also transact digitally. As of December 2021, around 900 million people used digital payment transactions in China. Total transaction value in the Digital Payments segment is projected to reach US$3,225 billion in 2022.


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South Korea

South Korea is another country that has digitized all kinds of banking and peer-to-peer transactions in a big way. Apps like Amex, Kakao Pay and has a lot of transactions in South Korea. There are other apps like Toss Pay, Payco, T-money, Cashbee, Visa payment. After the pandemic, a lot of businesses came online and started accepting payments online. This led to increase in online payment in South Korea. Total transaction value in the Digital Payments segment is projected to reach US$ 214 billion in 2022. The digital payments in south Korea is expected to reach $ 500 billion by 2024.

Thailand

Thailand is another country that is doing a lot in the field of online payment. They have come up with a payment platform called prompt pay. Before pandemic Thailand had about 7 million, now it has 14.5 million transactions in the whole country. There are also other startups that are coming forward and are building solutions to make digital payment more feasible. Total transaction value in the Digital Payments segment is projected to reach US$ 32 billion in 2022.

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom also has a lot of digital transactions. There is a number of options for digital wallets in the United Kingdom. PayPal is one of the prime companies which provide all kinds of banking transactions. After the pandemic, there is a huge rise in online payment in e-commerce. There are also other fintech companies that are coming into the space to provide solutions in this sector.

The UK is trying to build a very robust online payment system and the adoption of people to digital ways is also increasing. Total transaction value in the Digital Payments segment is projected to reach US$ 436 billion in 2022.

Nigeria

Nigeria is another country that has tried implementing digital payment methods in its territory. There are many apps like Tingg, Paga, Mobile Money. After the pandemic, the digital payment penetration is very high. Though there are other challenges like poor internet, a lot of entrepreneurs are coming forward to provide solutions in this area. The real-time payment volumes grew hugely in 2020. The Real-time volume was 1.9 billion in 2020. It is expected to reach $7.7 Billion by 2025. Total transaction value in the Digital Payments segment is projected to reach US$ 13 billion in 2022.

Japan

Though Japan is a very technologically advanced country, it is still making a huge amount of transactions in cash only. Experts say that the scenario will change as a lot of the younger population will start transacting through online means. After the pandemic, Japan also saw a significant rise in digital transactions. In 2021, around 5.74 billion digital transactions were recorded. Total transaction value in the Digital Payments segment is projected to reach US$ 364 billion in 2022.

Brazil

Brazil is also taking huge strides to transition to online payment. Though in the present, people in Brazil do 40% of transactions by cash a lot of people are transitioning to online means. There are a number of Fintech companies that have mushroomed up in order to provide service in this space. Pix a fintech software launched by Brazil's Central Bank is used hugely in this country. Total transaction value in the Digital Payments segment is projected to reach US$ 69 billion in 2022.

United States of America

The United States Of America also has a huge amount of online transactions in the world. Companies like PayPal and Google Pay are leading in the USA. They have redefined banking and has made banking transaction much simpler. After the pandemic, the USA also saw a significant rise in online transactions. Total transaction value in the Digital Payments is projected to reach US$ 1801 billion in 2022.


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Mexico

Mexico is transitioning to digital modes of payment recently but a lot needs to be done in this sector. Presently about 85% of transactions happen through cash. Strange behavior that has been noted in the Mexican people is that they consider cash to be more reliable than online payment. Even if they are buying something on any e-commerce, they prefer cash on delivery. Apart from that, the banks are also not very innovative. Total transaction value in the Digital Payments segment is forecasted to reach US$ 72 billion in 2022.

Conclusion

The Covid 19 has provided a massive boost to real-time payment applications as people were confined in their homes and opted for a cashless solution.

FAQs

Which country has most number of digital payments?

India is the leading country with 25.5 billion real-time payment transactions.

How many countries have instant payments?

54 countries have activated real-time payment systems.

Which country doesn't use cash?

Sweden is a country where about 80 percent of Swedes use cards with 58 percent of payments being made by card and only six percent made in cash, according to the Swedish Central Bank.

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