Contactless Payment Rises—And So Do Back-to-School Purchases—PSCU Report Shows

Contactless credit card transactions caught up to their debit counterparts as a percent of volume in August, with 17% of total card-present volume, as tracked in the monthly PSCU Payments Index, attributed to the payment form. That matches the share for contactless debit transactions.

PSCU, a St. Petersburg, Fla.-based credit union service organization, issues the PSCU Payments Index as a way to monitor payments activity. 

Contactless credit transactions made up only 10% of total card-present credit card volume in August 2020. The debit version’s share increased to 17% from 12% the same month last year.

Mobile wallets experienced strong growth, too. Mobile-wallet credit transaction volume was up 96% in August, compared to August 2019. “Although credit purchase dollars dipped slightly from last month’s growth, performance was still strong at +122% compared to 2019. The average mobile-wallet credit purchase increased by $3.56, up 13%, to $30.86 in August 2021 compared to August 2019,” the index reported.

Mobile-wallet debit activity saw a 145% growth in transaction volume in August 2021 from August 2019. The average mobile-wallet debit purchase was $18.21, up 22% from $14.99 two years ago.

Among merchant categories in the index, those related to back-to-school purchases increased over last year. Credit purchases were up 18% year-over-year and debit purchases were up 12%. “This observation is influenced by multiple factors, including the challenging credit activity/growth environment in 2020 as debit activity experienced substantial growth during that time,” the index noted.

Sports apparel stores had the most growth, with credit purchases up 74% and debit purchases up 63% year-over-year. Stationery, office, and school-supply stores saw decreases of 7% for credit and 11% for debit in the same period.

Among the top three retailers—Amazon.com Inc., Target Corp., and Walmart Inc.—Target had a 21% growth in credit and an 11% growth in debit purchases in August from the year prior. Credit purchases were up 12% and debit up 11% for Walmart and Amazon experienced a 6% jump in credit purchases and a 9% increase in debit purchases.