Vietnamese consumers are embracing digital payments as a faster and more convenient way to pay, with consumers using their credit and debit cards more often for in-store and online purchases, digital payment methods provider Visa said on Thursday.

More and more Vietnamese consumers are using digital payments.— VNS Photo courtesy Visa Vietnam

Growth in consumer use of Visa products in 2018 indicates a number of positive trends in the growth of digital payments, it said.

The 2018 Visa Consumer Payment Attitudes Study, which reveals the extent to which digital payments are becoming a part of everyday life for Vietnamese consumers, said: “The total value of purchases made by Vietnamese consumers on their Visa credit and debit cards is up 37 per cent, while the number of transactions is up by 25 per cent. eCommerce in particular saw strong growth with the total value of purchases up by 40 per cent.”

Dang Tuyet Dung, country manager for Visa Vietnam and Laos said: “As the Vietnamese economy grows and becomes increasingly internationalised, commerce here will require ever faster, more efficient ways of paying. These recent figures from our network demonstrate clearly the fact that digital payments are now truly a part of day-to-day life for many Vietnamese consumers regardless of whether they’re buying from an online retailer on the other side of the world or simply paying for their groceries.”

The report, which specifically looked into consumer sentiments towards variousforms of payment, found that Vietnamese consumers are carrying less cash, and half are making card and mobile payments at least two to three times a week.

Seventy-three per cent of respondents are using credit and debit cards, up 59 per cent from the previous year, while 82 per cent have tried making transactions on mobile phones.

The research also found that the use of new payment technologies is picking up traction, with 44 per cent of the respondents indicating that they are now making payments through apps, while 32 per cent are using contactless payment technologies that allow users to simply tap their cards on the terminal to pay.

Some 19 per cent have used QR payments where a phone scans a unique merchant code and transfers money to the merchant’s account.

Dung added: “While digital payments are still in their relative youth in Viet Nam, it’s been incredibly positive to see how consumers are embracing new payment technologies — it augurs well for these technologies in particular, and for digital payments more broadly.” — VNS