Digital Wallets Account for 20% of All In-Store Payments in Germany, Highest in EU-5

With nearly 29 billion debit and credit cards in circulation worldwide, cards power the digital economy. But as consumers warm up to alternatives, other payment methods such as domestic schemes, account-to-account transfers and mobile wallets are gaining traction.

In Germany, for example, digital wallets are an important payment method for consumers, 81% of whom own a smartphone, according to a study which assesses digital engagement using PYMNTS’ ConnectedEconomy™ Index (CE Index).

Read the report: Benchmarking Worlds Digital Transformation

Published in collaboration with Stripe, the report also shows that Germany is also the most digital wallet–centric nation among the 11 countries surveyed, with 44% of all domestic online transactions using digital wallets, while 83% of all wallet transactions in the country use PayPal.

Read more: Benchmarking the EU’s Digital Engagement: Germany

In fact, PayPal is the most used digital wallet in the country, where it accounts for 37% of all online transactions. Among the 5 EU countries studied, only Italy at 42.1% comes close to Germany in preference for digital wallets, while in France it represents only 19% of transactions.

Read also: PayPal Leading Digital Wallet in EU-5, Ahead of Cards in Germany, Study Finds

Germans’ preference for digital wallets is not only limited to online transactions. The report further revealed that 20% of all in-store transactions that take place in the country are made using mobile devices — the highest of all EU-5 countries.

Related: Could Super App Users Spell the End of Germany’s Cash-Heavy Retail Economy?

In another PYMNTS-PayPal study on how consumers’ attitude to super apps, researchers found that 20% of German consumers surveyed — about 14 million people — reported being “very” or “extremely” interested in a super app, an indication that Germany represents a huge potential market for PayPal to pursue its super app ambitions.

Related: German Consumers See Banks as Super Apps

In fact, according to the Super App Shift report, 16% of Germans list PayPal as their most trusted super app provider, second only to banks.

Further reading: 76% of German Convenience-Seekers Interested in Using Super Apps to Manage Interpersonal Comms

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