Checkout.com flags Covid powered surge in demand for digital payments

74% of European consumers have no intention to significantly reduce their online shopping now that they can revisit the high street, according to research from PayTech venture Checkout.com.

It also found that 75% of e-commerce retail leaders believe the future of shopping is solely online.

Checkout.com gathered the views of 10,000 European consumers and 550 senior executives at European e-commerce retail organisations.

97% of the latter said that to remain relevant, resilient and profitable, they will need to evolve their business models within the next 18 months.

25% are creating new local fulfilment centres to meet demand, whilst 50% have responded to increased cross-border demand since the start of the crisis by expanding the range of payment methods they offer.

Yet 60% of e-commerce merchants feel they still don’t have the payment insights needed to drive better performance.

Three in 10 Brits, meanwhile, plan to purchase with buy now and pay later in the next 12 months.

80% of European consumers will use a digital wallet such as Apple Pay, Google Pay or PayPal in the next 12 months and 40% will do so regularly.

Moshe Winegarten, Senior Vice President at Checkout.com, says: “As lockdowns ease, analysts have predicted that e-commerce revenues are set to drop as consumers head back to the high street. But our research reveals that’s not the case.”

“E-commerce will continue to accelerate, testing online retailers along the way. But the savviest of retailers will capitalise on this opportunity, riding the wave of accelerated e-commerce adoption in Europe and willingness to try emerging payment methods.”

“The past 18 months have demonstrated the need for businesses to remain agile, adapting business models, implementing new payment methods and meeting new regulatory requirements.”