Mobile payments have increased by 5000 percent in Australia

PayPal has revealed that over the last three years, the growth in the use of this technology has exploded.

According to the latest Secure Insight report from PayPal, smartphones are becoming an extremely important part of the overall shopping experience, as mobile payments are being greatly embraced by Australians.

This has reached the extent that in three years, they have grown by a factor of 5000 percent.

PayPal explained that this mobile payments growth rose from a base of $37 million. Beyond Australia, the wider online retail market experienced an 11 percent growth to bring its own figure to $36.8 billion. When compared to retail transactions, overall, this is significant, as the total figure had been estimated at only 2 to 3 percent.

This demonstrates that mobile payments are rising far more quickly than transactions as a whole.

Jeff Clementz, the managing director for PayPal Australia, has explained that the last three years that the company has experienced in retail in the country had been focused on expanding e-commerce. However, he has said that the next phase is now underway and it will concentrate on solutions for the point of sale.

He explained that “Technology development has driven deep structural change in Australian retail.” Clementz also went on to add that “Where once there were few retailers that could truly be called omni-channel, today there are many connecting with consumers in-store, online and on the go.”

The focus that PayPal has now taken is to change the way that the cash register experience works for both retailers and consumers. This aligns with its recent announcement of its PayPal Beacon mobile payments service. Within it, consumers are provided with a hands-free experience. It allows customers to head into a brick and mortar shop, choose their products, and then pay for them at the checkout counter without ever taking their wallets or their devices out of their pockets or purses.

The hope is that these mobile payments will provide a much faster, smoother, and more convenient transaction to enhance shopping, overall, and simplify the purchasing experience to a point that has never before been achieved.