Visa study shows almost nine in ten Thais are going cashless
03/02/2022
Visa, the world’s leader in digital payments, has today released findings from its latest Visa Consumer Payment Attitudes study1 (the “Study”) that show nearly nine in ten Thais are spending their daily life without cash. Among those who have attempted going cashless, almost half (43%) of the respondents lasted for more than a week without using cash.
For those who have never tried going cashless, 79 percent said they are confident to get by without cash for the next twenty-four hours, an increase of 11 percent compared to the previous edition of the study.
Suripong Tantiyanon, Country Manager, Visa Thailand, said: “With greater hindsight into the last version of the study, we see that Thai consumers’ evolving behaviours and more favourable attitudes towards digital payments were, due in part, driven out of necessity. However, based on this year’s findings and our dialogue with stakeholders across various industries, we’re seeing more evidence that the changes have become more habitual. The shift away from cash is becoming increasingly permanent.”
According to the study, more than three in five (61%) of Thai consumers said they carried less cash than in the previous year. The top three reasons for the decrease in cash is that they use more digital payments (77%), are concerned about the potential of infection from handling cash (54%), and they find more merchant locations accepting digital payments (45%).
The top five merchant categories Thai consumers foresee going fully cashless in the near future are convenience stores (67%), bill payments (64%), supermarkets (62%), public transport (56%), and food & dining (55%).
Contactless payments, which enable consumers to pay simply by tapping their payment card or smartphone on the payment terminal, provide a faster, safer and more convenient payment experience. Contactless payments are growing in popularity in Thailand as a way to pay for goods and services at physical retailers and for transit. Bangkok commuters can now use their contactless credit cards to pay for fares on MRT Blue and Purple lines, in addition to bus, electric boat services, and tollway.
According to the Study, nearly nine in ten of respondents (87%) are aware of contactless cards. Among those who do not currently use them, 86 percent said they are interested in this type of payment.
Thai consumers are already looking to a future payments landscape. Based on the findings, nearly seven in ten respondents (69%) said they are interested in investing in cryptocurrency if it were available in the market. Additionally, four in five (85%) Thais are interested in paying with cryptocurrency, driven by Gen-Z (57%).
“Visa continuously strives to create ways for everyone, everywhere to participate in the digital economy. We hope that findings from our latest study will help recovering and thriving businesses in Thailand, both large and small, unlock new commerce opportunities,” Suripong concluded.
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1The Visa Consumer Payment Attitudes Study 2021 was conducted by CLEAR on behalf of Visa in October 2021 across seven Southeast Asian countries: Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. The total sample size is 6,520 including 1,000 consumers in Thailand aged 18 – 65, covering all education groups with a minimum income cut-off of THB 15,000.
About Visa Inc.
Visa (NYSE: V) is a world leader in digital payments, facilitating more than 215 billion payments transactions between consumers, merchants, financial institutions and government entities across more than 200 countries and territories each year. Our mission is to connect the world through the most innovative, convenient, reliable and secure payments network, enabling individuals, businesses and economies to thrive. We believe that economies that include everyone everywhere, uplift everyone everywhere and see access as foundational to the future of money movement. Learn more at Visa.com.