A poll revealed that India is on the right track in bridging the digital payments divide

With an increase of 19 percent in the actual contactless cards issued in Q1 2020 as compared to Q4 2019, India is on the right track in bridging the digital payments divide. The top five cities in contactless transactions are Bengaluru, Delhi and NCR, Chennai, and Mumbai said a survey by Mastercard in India quoted in a report by The Financial Express.

As per the polls, the south region dominates the contactless ecosystem with the maximum number of contactless transactions there. Bengaluru has by far the highest number of contactless transactions, said the report.

The Financial Express report further said that penetration of contactless transactions is being driven by the top four categories that include food stores, restaurants, fuel, and drug stores. Food stores, restaurants, and bars and gas stations are the only categories with 1 million + transactions in each month of Q1 2020, the report further said quoting the Mastercard poll.

The poll revealed that over 54 percent of the respondents know how to use a contactless card on a PoS machine. It further said that 53 percent of the respondents were aware of the fact that consumers don’t get charged multiple times if the contactless card is tapped more than once. However, 30 percent did not know this highlighting the need for more awareness on the safety of contactless payments, said the report quoting the poll results.

Further, the poll said that 74 percent of the respondents said that they will continue making purchases digitally or via contactless mode in the coming times, said the report.

Read the complete report in The Financial Express