KUALA LUMPUR, July 22 — Adoption of non-cash payments continues with more than half of Malaysians making a recent purchase with a cashless option, led by a further pick-up in e-wallet usage, increasing more than any other non-cash method to 2022 from 2021.
According to a study by market research company lpsos, the continued growth of non-cash payments was primarily driven by the younger population, while for the older age groups, adaptation has stalled.
“E-wallet usage continues to skew heavily towards urban high-income segments, however, usage is picking up among the lower income groups as well.
“As consumers have re-tuned to physical retail, e-wallet usage has seen major expansion into over-the-counter purchases, with almost half of all e-wallet users making regular payments at food and beverage outlets and retail stores,” lpsos said in a statement today.
Ipsos Malaysia Public Affairs associate director Lars Erik Lie said the pandemic has been a great accelerator although non-cash payment was not entirely new before Covid-19.
“As ‘touchless’ interaction became an integral part of social distancing, more than half of Malaysians now have an average of two non-cash payment modes at their disposal,” he said.
Lie said e-wallets, a relatively new entrant over the last two years, have successfully reached more than a quarter of Malaysians and they are also quickly becoming all-purpose payment methods.
“Over the past year, there has been significant growth in e-wallet usage for over-the-counter purchases.
“As e-wallet payment becomes viable across channels, there is an indication that consumers are finding their favourite and sticking with it,” he added.
— Bernama
