UK: Half of all debit transactions are contactless

This week, UK Finance reported that in July half of all debit card transactions were contactless, accounting for 647 million taps – a major milestone in the technology’s timeline. While over a third (35%) of credit card transactions were also contactless. These figures show a significant increase in the use of contactless technology compared to 2018, with a growth of 5.7%. What is interesting, though, is that this news comes just a couple of weeks after the results of another survey - from IDEX Biometrics ASA - revealed that 63% of UK consumers are worried about contactless fraud.

These results reflect Compass Plus’ 2018 payments and banking habits survey, which revealed that despite 84% of consumers regularly making contactless payments, almost half of respondents (48%) considered them to be the least secure way to pay. What is clear is that despite continued security concerns, contactless technology has undoubtedly made its way into the mainstream and the convenience of using the technology has meant that it has become a staple in the way that many consumers’ pay in the UK today.