Bangkok--6 Feb--Spark Communications
Thai Visa cardholders showed strong growth in 2014 with credit card payment volume up 10.6 percent and eCommerce growth up 14 percent
This year Visa celebrates its 20th anniversary in Thailand, over which time it has been at the forefront of numerous milestones in the growth of electronic payments. From introducing the first Visa credit card in 1984, to opening Visa office in 1994, and through to the first contactless payment sticker in 2014, Visa has been playing a vital role in driving the penetration of electronic payments in the country.
Cash might still be king in Thailand, making up about 80 percent of consumer expenditure, but card payments are gaining ground, growing to 17 percent of total spend. Visa Thailand continued to show strong growth last year despite uneven global economic growth. The number of Visa credit cards issued in Thailand grew by 8.9 percent, ahead of the Asia Pacific average of 5.8 percent. Visa credit card transaction numbers also increased by 12 percent compared to 6.4 percent across Asia Pacific. And Visa credit card payment volume growth was also up 12.7 percent, compared to the Asia Pacific average of 5.2 percent.
Somboon Krobteeranon, Visa Country Manager for Thailand said: “Thailand continues to be one of the key markets for Visa in Southeast Asia. As investor confidence returns, we hope to strengthen our core businesses, while continuing to expand in growing segments such as Visa payWave contactless payment and eCommerce.”
Visa’s pillars for growth
As it heads into its third decade of operation, Visa strives to deepen partnerships with clients, transform technology to drive efficiency and innovation, expand access to Visa products and services, and champion security to ensure Visa is the best way to pay and be paid, for everyone everywhere.
“Trust underpins all of these pillars. It is what deep partnerships with financial institutions and merchant clients are built upon. It is how innovation is forged. And it is the fuel that propels Visa to lead the industry on security by developing a roadmap to protect cardholder data and safeguard against fraud,” said Mr. Somboon.
Visa is working closely with its clients to understand specific market needs to expand access to its products and services, so that a father buying a new bicycle for his daughter in Bangkok, or an accountant in Khon Khaen purchasing her first brand-name bag online, or a couple on holidays from Beijing using their Visa payWave card at a Pattaya supermarket, will receive the same fast, secure and convenient payment experience that is synonymous with the Visa brand.
Innovation wise, Visa payWave contactless payment technology gained traction in 2014. Five new banks issued Visa payWave cards with eight new programs, including new form factors such as a Visa payWave payment sticker. There are currently approximately 7,000 contactless payment acceptance terminals deployed at more than 400 outlets around the country. Offering greater convenience and security, as provided by EMV chip technology, the number of Visa payWave cards issued has reached 500,000.
eCommerce: reshaping the retail landscape
Thai eCommerce has grown rapidly over the last few years and with the expansion of the online marketplace and the digitization of commerce, this trend looks set to continue. According to a recent study commissioned by Visa, 70 percent of Thai respondents had shopped online in the past 12 months. Thai eCommerce payment volume has risen 14 percent year-on-year, placing Thailand second only to Singapore as Visa’s largest eCommerce market by payment volume in Southeast Asia.
Nine out of ten Thai consumers described themselves as moderate (25 percent) or heavy (64 percent) users of eCommerce, with over half (51 percent) also shopping on their mobile phones, according to another study across four Southeast Asian markets in 2014.
“The retail landscape is changing and Visa is playing an active – and responsible – role in shaping the future of commerce, accelerating the development of innovative platforms, payment capabilities and new services to accommodate different transaction types,” said Mr. Krobteeranon.
Thailand eCommerce payment volume accounts for 11 percent of Visa’s total payment volume in Thailand, signaling further potential for growth. The top three merchant categories shopped for online are air travel, insurance and financial services – accounting for more than 80 percent of Visa’s Thailand eCommerce payment volume.
Visa, the next 20 years
Mr. Somboon believes that the future will be exciting and challenging in equal measure for the payments industry.
“We’re working to make it as fast, safe and convenient for you to use your Visa card in the online world, as it is in the physical world. New technologies and the digitization of commerce allow us to reach markets and provide services not previously possible. This trend will continue and create great opportunities for Thailand in the years and decades to come.”
“Over the past 20 years in Thailand we have built a strong network of financial institutions that have issued tens of millions of Visa cards, and provided acceptance at tens of thousands of merchant locations, helping to link the nation to global commerce. Today, if you try to look up the definition of a ‘payments business’ in a dictionary, you probably won’t find it. We must define it ourselves – for the next 20 years,” said Mr. Somboon.