Will digital payment methods see success in the UAE?

Liquidity conditions in the UAE have seen an improvement in the past few years. This meant an increased demand for credits and quicker transactions for the nation. While cash reigned supreme for most of these purposes, the UAE mobile wallet market also witnessed a surge in performance rates. New methods of payment compatible with all the major operating systems are continuing to gain traction.
This is particularly luring for technology giants looking for an expansion. For instance, Samsung Pay set its foot in the UAE digital payment market right with celebrating its one-year anniversary. How has the user-strata reacted to this advancement?

Consumer adoption

Handling cash can be cumbersome. Moreover, with people being incentivized towards it with loyalty programs and cashback offers, the native population is getting increasingly welcoming towards this technology.

For business owners, digital payments are all about security, speed and the same convenience of going cashless. They can use their e-wallets for both; buying and selling. Customers are faced with lesser checkout times than in physical shops and are lured towards businesses that have implemented this technology. It also means a better conversion of window-shoppers to actual customers because they do not have to necessarily carry cash in their pockets to buy something anymore.

The mentioned security factor is equally important for the buyers and service providers. They can both be free from fraudulent transactions. Every transaction leaves a digital train which means that products are accurately priced and there is no illegally obtained income going into these deals.

What do market research reports say?

Information technology market research reports indicate that if there is one challenge to the quick spread of this introduction, it is the privacy concern that is deeply rooted in the consumers’ minds. The digital trail that people leave when they make payments online includes the transaction specifics like recipient and amount and other personal information too. If there is a data leak, at any point in time, all of this will be exposed and will embark the case of a huge privacy breach. While providing easier online banking services, remote purchases are hence involved with huge risks.

The normalization of mobile wallets or other modes of digital payment will thus require a simultaneous surge in the quality of cybersecurity. For a more secure remote purchase experience, the UAE digital wallet market must show an improvement in the security features of their options.