BASINGSTOKE, England, Aug 21 — A new study from Juniper Research, the foremost experts in emerging payment markets, has found the volume of QR code payments in leading Southeast Asian markets will increase by more than 590 per cent, from 13 billion in 2023 to 90 billion in 2028.
High growth in Southeast Asia and other developing markets is largely down to financial inclusivity that QR payments offer; enabling unbanked users to access digital payments. Conversely, Western markets have seen very limited adoption; highlighting the global divide in QR payment markets.
The Critical Role of International Interoperability Standards
The report found national QR payment schemes, including India’s UPI and Brazil’s Pix, played a key role in encouraging market adoption, with their success driving the implementation of national schemes in 2023 in Kenya and Bangladesh. However, it found significant growth to market volume will come from cross-border interoperability within Southeast Asian markets.
While international interoperability has been offered from payment providers like Alipay for years, national QR payment standards are now unifying across borders, enabling wider interoperability.
Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand have already unified their payment standards; enabling businesses to accept payments from international visitors using their domestic digital wallets, while Singapore and the Philippines are set to collaborate by the end of 2023; further unifying payments across the region.
Payment providers are advised to work closely with legislative bodies, encouraging interoperability to bolster QR payments usage.
QR P2P Bank Transfers See Some Traction in Europe
The adoption of QR payments overall in the west remains low. However, according to the research, the area of QR P2P bank transfers has gained significant traction since 2022, with Belgium’s Payconiq and Spain’s Bizum used by a significant proportion of users. Furthermore, Revolut and Vipps MobilePay have been promoting P2P and business based QR solutions across Europe through reduced transaction fees. To maximise adoption, payment providers should focus on offering competitive pricing versus established local payment methods.
— Bernama
