NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Friday, June 19, 2015

It’s hardly news that mobile is important to emerging economies. Stories of those countries lepfrogging older technologies have been told so many times that they can sometimes seem tired. But when you stop and think about it, even the rise of mobile money and marketing in these markets has been nothing short of remarkable. For instance, the latest report from global trade body Mobile Ecosystem Forum (MEF), shows that 69% of mobile media users globally carried out a banking activity via mobile in 2015, up three percent year-on-year. But in Indonesia the figure was 80%, in Nigeria 85% and Kenya an incredible 93%.

Ecommerce via mobile is also gaining traction, particularly in mature markets. 43% have bought a product on their mobile either by using a credit or debit card, an online payment service or a retailer’s branded scheme. In the US, 29% have inputed debit or credit card information into their device to make a payment versus the global average of 18%. In the UK meanwhile, 15% have used a retailer’s online payment service – the global average is just 9%.

By contrast, the study found that uptake of proximity payments was still in its infancy. Only 20% have used a mobile wallet, plug & pay device or mobile loyalty scheme which shows consumers are not yet convinced by mobile wallets. A third of people either haven’t heard of them (18%) or don’t see the point (15%).

Social media emerges as a key opportunity for mobile payments, especially in growth markets where feature phones are still dominant. A quarter (25%) of feature phone users say that a social media page is their number one destination for mobile commerce ahead of 15% of smartphone users.