Canadians Eschew Mobile Payments, For Now: Survey

Mobile payments in Canada only garner 2% of all consumer purchases, finds a study from research firm GfK. But that does not signal the low adoption rate will continue.

Only 21% of Canadian shoppers, defined as those who have shopped in one of 15 product categories in the past six months, said they made a mobile payment online and in a store. That is much less than nation’s like China, where 83% of consumers said they use mobile payments, South Korea, 62%, and the United States, 33%.

The prospect for increased use of mobile payments in Canada is buoyed by more favorable attitudes about the technology among younger generations, GfK says.

Among older consumers, those from 50 to 68 years old, only 9% said that mobile payments made their shopping more efficient, compared with 38% of those 18 to 24 years old, 37% of those 35 to 34, and 27% of those 35 to 49.

Though all age groups have concerns about mobile payments security, it is more pronounced among older generations, GfK says.

Only 8% of the 50 to 68 years group agreed that mobile payments are 100% secure. That increases to 22% for the next younger generation of 35 to 49, and increases yet again to 32% and 31% for the 25 to 34 and 18 to 24, respectively, age groups.

“While most Canadians have yet to see the benefit of mobile payments, our findings suggest that Millennials and even younger consumers will eventually accelerate the adoption of mobile payment methods,” Stephen Popiel, vice president for consulting at GfK Canada, said in a press release. “As usual, Canadians are much more conservative with financial matters, including payment technology. In order to encourage widespread acceptance, financial services companies and device makers will need to come to terms with Canadians’ concerns about security and their sense that mobile payments may just be a gimmick.”