Report Overview
The deepening penetration of online stores for a wide variety of goods and services and customers' increasing preference for online shopping and contactless payments are expected to drive the growth of GCC mobile payment market during the forecast period between 2023 and 2029.

GCC Mobile Payment Market - Industry Trends & Forecast Report, 2029

GCC mobile payment market size was estimated to be worth USD 29.68 billion in 2022. During the forecast period between 2023 and 2029, the GCC mobile payment market size is projected to grow at a CAGR of 22.49% reaching a value of USD 122.16 billion by 2029. Major growth factors for the GCC mobile payment market include the increasing number of smartphone users along with the flourishing e-commerce industry. Mobile payments offer the convenience of making real-time payments, which is attracting consumers, especially the younger demographic. With expanding opportunities in GCC, various mobile payment platforms are launching their services in this region, which is propelling the growth of the overall market.

GCC Mobile Payment Market - Overview

Mobile payment is an act of transferring or paying money, usually for bills, products, or services, to a person, business, or merchant using a mobile smartphone to carry out and confirm the payment. A mobile browser, SIM toolkit, or virtual or electronic wallet are all examples of payment tools. Mobile payments can be convenient, fast, and secure. They can, however, be expensive and still vulnerable to issues with technology. They also offer additional biometric identification layers, such as fingerprint and/or face recognition scans, to help businesses make sure that payments are legitimate.

GCC Mobile Payment Market

Growth Drivers

Consumers' Preference for Online Shopping and Contactless Payments

As the Internet becomes more widely available in many GCC countries, the eCommerce industry is rapidly gaining traction. Traditional retail companies are moving to the online marketplace in an effort of increasing their consumer base and staying relevant in the market. E-commerce enables people to purchase whenever and from anywhere. This implies that customers may acquire the goods they want and need more quickly since they are not limited by the business hours of a conventional brick-and-mortar store, which is also supported by mobile payments to make real-time payments.

Restraints

Security Concerns and Risk of Data Thefts

Although mobile payments are secured through highly-advanced methods of encryption and tokenization, they are vulnerable to data theft and security issues. The likelihood of getting hacked rises while using an unprotected Wi-Fi network. On an unsafe network, users should be cautious while adding cards, making purchases, or sending money. The major cause of this is that hackers frequently skulk around these sites, waiting to impersonate registration processes in order to acquire account details. These may make consumers vary on using mobile payment, limiting its market growth.

Impact of COVID-19 on GCC Mobile Payment Market

The unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic offered lucrative growth opportunities to the GCC mobile payment market. The spread of the virus through contact and the high chances of the virus communication through the exchange of cash prompted consumers to shift to contactless payment methods including mobile payments such as QR codes and tap to pay by NFC. Additionally, the expansion in the e-commerce sector during the pandemic for regular essential items such as groceries also boosted the scope of mobile payments in GCC countries.

GCC Mobile Payment Market

Segmental Coverage

GCC Mobile Payment Market - By Mode of Transaction

Based on the mode of transaction, the GCC mobile payment market is segregated into WAP, NFC, SMS, USSD, and other segments. The Near Field Communication (NFC) segment holds the highest share in the GCC mobile payment market. NFC is a simple, safe, and affordable way to link Android and iOS mobile phones to appliances or other electrical devices, which is why it is gaining favor among designers and customers. Discretion and lower emissions are two major concerns that NFC addresses in connected appliances.

GCC Mobile Payment Market - By Application

Based on application, the GCC mobile payment market is segmented into entertainment, energy & utilities, healthcare, retail, hospitality & transportation, and others. The retail segment accounts for the highest share of the market owing to the flourishing e-commerce sector in the GCC countries. The advent of mobile payments has made this online much more effective. The buyers may finish a transaction quickly by using mobile payments. Customers can also complete transactions using automatic systems that save information to cut down on time, such as NFC, In-App, Peer-to-Peer, and Browser-Based Mobile Payments. Peer-to-peer networks also offer unique security measures of their own, such as the use of bank-level encryption to protect your data.

GCC Mobile Payment Market - By Country

Geographically, the GCC mobile payment market covers the following major countries in the region: Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman. Saudi Arabia dominates the GCC mobile payment market. According to Saudi Payments, 35% of all near-field communication transactions in Saudi Arabia in 2021 involved payments made with a mobile device, as reported by Arab News. The report says that mobile payment is being facilitated by expanding the use of popular platforms including Apple Pay and Google Pay. Following Saudi Arabia, Qatar is also registering significant traction in the mobile payment market and is projected to register a high CAGR during the forecast period.

Competitive Landscape

Major players operating in the GCC Mobile Payment market include Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Citibank, HSBC, PayPal express checkout, HDFC Bank, National Bank of Kuwait, Diners Club, Barclays, and Hyperpay. To further enhance their market share, these companies employ various strategies, including mergers and acquisitions, partnerships, joint ventures, license agreements, and new product launches.

Recent Developments

In February 2023 - Mobily, a Saudi Arabia-based telecommunications company, launched Mobile pay services in partnership with Ericsson that enables financial services like contactless payments and money transfers in Saudi Arabia.

By Mode of Transaction
WAP
NFC
SMS
USSD
Others

By Application
Entertainment
Energy and Utilities
Healthcare
Retail
Hospitality and Transportation
Others

By Country
Saudi Arabia
UAE
Qatar
Bahrain
Kuwait
Oman