China to account for half of mobile payments worldwide by 2023

The country’s mobile payment transaction value is expected to hit $1.3t this year.

In two years, China is expected to account for over 50% of mobile payments worldwide, highlighting its role as a key market in the global mobile payments field.

Mobile payment transaction value in China is forecasted to hit $1.3t in 2021, according to data by UK-based financial site ComprarAcciones. The country has over 1.59 billion registered mobile phone subscriptions in the country as of February 2021.

The so-called undisputed global leader in the mobile payment market is further expected to account for half of all mobile payment transactions in the whole world in just two years.

China’s dominance is attributable to existing market conditions that favored a growth in popularity for mobile wallets, said ComprarAcciones.

With China at the forefront, countries in Asia Pacific have been the dominant players in the mobile payments market, and will play a major role in pushing up the value of the global contactless payment market to hit a record $2.49t by end-2021. This is 24% higher than the $2.01t transaction value in 2020.

The value is projected to surge by close to $500 million in 2021, translating to a growth rate of 107% in two years, according to the data.