Online transactions made on a mobile device continue to increase their share 

Adyen, the global payments technology company, today published the Q3 edition (July-Sept) of its quarterly Mobile Payments Index, which tracks mobile payment data from web-based transactions across Adyen’s customer base. For the first time, the Index reveals information on mobile share of key local payment methods, showing that up to half of online transactions with select payment methods are now on mobile.

Mobile share of key local payment methods
Among Asian payment methods, the Index reveals that 47 percent of payments made with the Japanese card JCB were made on a mobile device. With Chinese payment methods, 35 percent of Alipay payments and 23 percent of UnionPay payments were on mobile.

In Europe, iDEAL, the Dutch online banking payment method led the way, with 49 percent of payments made on mobile. For Open Invoice in Scandinavia, mobile represents 42 percent, Bancontact/Mister Cash in Belgium makes up 38 percent, and SEPA Direct Debit stands at 24 percent.

Of particular interest for those merchants operating in markets where PayPal is popular, such as the US and the UK, the Index found 40 percent of PayPal transactions are currently being made on a mobile device.

“Adyen has been focusing on offering mobile-optimized checkout for years now, and with this data demonstrating that up to half of local payment method transactions are taking place on mobile, it is clear that optimizing the payment flow for a smooth mobile checkout is crucial for businesses,” said Roelant Prins, chief commerce officer, Adyen.

“As an example, more than one third of Alipay transactions processed by Adyen are on mobile, and customers such as Evernote and The Cambridge Satchel Company have reported immediate increases in conversion after offering mobile-optimized Alipay payment flow with Adyen,” he added.

More than 30 percent of global transactions happening on mobile, the UK continues to lead
In Q3 this year, mobile payments increased across the globe, and now account for over 30 percent of all global online transactions, compared to 28.7 percent in Q2 this year. The UK continued to be the leading market on the Adyen platform, with 46.9 percent of online transactions taking place on mobile, up from 44.8 percent last quarter. In other key markets, Spain and the Netherlands recorded 32 percent of online payments on mobile, followed by the US with 27 percent, Germany with 25 percent, and France with 23 percent.

The decline of the tablet continues
For the ninth straight quarter, smartphone transactions grew their share of mobile payments when compared to tablets. The current smartphone versus tablet share of mobile payments now stands at 66 percent versus 34 percent.  This compares with 64 percent versus 36 percent in Q2 and 61.8 percent versus 38.2 percent in Q1.  Even among retailers who historically have seen a relatively high percentage of online purchases come from tablets, the percentage of tablet purchases declined two percent quarter-over-quarter, and now represent only 3 percent more of total online purchases when compared to smartphones.