Mobile wallet payments, such as Google Pay and Apple Pay, continue to surge in popularity, as evidenced by figures from the Central Bank. In the first half of the year, mobile wallet card payments accounted for almost one-third of all card transactions conducted at payment terminals.
Mobile wallet payments involve utilizing cards stored on portable devices, allowing users to make payments through their mobile phones or card-based wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay.
The Central Bank report, entitled ‘Behind the Data,’ revealed that mobile wallets are experiencing increased usage as a payment method, with an average of 40 million mobile wallet card-based payment transactions recorded per month in the first half of 2023.
However, in terms of transaction value, contactless card and mobile wallet payments make up a smaller portion of overall card payment transactions at payment terminals. This is because contactless cards are primarily used for lower-value payments.
During the first half of this year, the total value of monthly card transactions, including cash withdrawals, averaged around €6.8 billion. This equates to an average of 162 million card transactions per month.
Contactless card payments make up over three-quarters of the total volume of card payments (excluding online/remote payments). There were an average of 103 million contactless card transactions recorded per month, amounting to €1.7 billion in value.
Despite efforts by banks to discourage cash usage and the rise of contactless payments due to the pandemic, cash remains a highly popular payment method. Domestic cash withdrawals totaled €6.4 billion in the first half of this year, with Dublin accounting for a third of these withdrawals.
The Central Bank also analyzed cash withdrawal rates per 1,000 population. Surprisingly, Carlow had higher cash withdrawal rates compared to Dublin during the period. On the other hand, Westmeath had the lowest ranking in terms of cash withdrawals per 1,000 population.
When it comes to card payments, Dublin takes the lead, accounting for half of all card payments by value. Other major cities such as Cork and Galway rank second and third, respectively. Dublin also tops the scale in terms of total card payments per 1,000 population, with a figure of €12.6 million.
On the other hand, Offaly ranked the lowest in card spending per population. Within the retail sector, card spending accounts for nearly half of all domestic spending, with the ‘groceries/perishables’ sub-sector making up almost a quarter of this spending, totaling €1.3 billion in the first half of this year.
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