Three key players in the payment industry of Saudi Arabia, Abdulaziz AlAfaleg, Managing Director, Saudi Payments, Ali Bailoun, Regional General Manager for KSA, Oman & Bahrain, Visa and Mazen AlDarrab, Founder & Chief Growth Officer, Zid, discussed the penetration of digital in transactions and thus the need to provide a seamless experience for customers adopting these new digital payment options with Remo Abbondandolo, General Manager, MENA, Checkout.com.

When talking about payment options especially after the pandemic, it is very clear thatcustomers seek digital experiences and digital transactions. Cash on delivery dropped by 85%, with people continuing the habits they had during the pandemic, such as using delivery apps for groceries or scanning QR codes for restaurant menus. Ultimately there is no longer a meaningful distinction between e-commerce and ‘traditional’ commerce. Modern retail combines the two into an experience that should be seamless for the consumer.

Saudi moved from 4% contactless penetration to approximately 96%, making it the highest country in the MENA region, higher than the Europe, Hong Kong, and Canada average. 50% of Saudis between 18 and 40 years old say that they would like to make online purchases with a digital currency. It is evident that unforeseen circumstances like COVID have yielded growth in the digital payment infrastructure and this needs to be addressed efficiently.

Across payment providers, payment infrastructure operators and the fintech companies that support them, the challenge is to provide a range of services at every touchpoint and outlet that match the needs of consumers. This in turn requires close collaboration with central banks to create a regulatory environment and an infrastructure that will support this rapid diversification of demand, while maintaining security and confidence in transactions.

With metaverse, contactless, open banking, agency banking, crypto, and everything around blockchain and distributed ledgers, on the rise, the payments infrastructures have to collaborate in order to create the best customer journey and experience for consumers to buy and get paid for the goods and services.