Payment cards are widely used in the e-commerce space in Singapore and collectively account for 41.4% of the payments made on the online shopping platforms in the current year, finds GlobalData’s 2022 Financial Services Consumer Survey*.

GlobalData’s E-Commerce Analytics reveal that the Singapore e-commerce market will register a 19.5% growth in 2022 to reach SGD15.2 billion ($11.2 billion), as consumers increasingly shift from offline to online purchases. The market is set to increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.4% between 2022 and 2026 to reach SGD24.2 billion ($17.9 billion) in 2026.

Ravi Sharma, Lead Banking and Payments Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Singapore’s ecommerce market is well developed, supported by the country’s robust technology infrastructure and growing number of tech-savvy customers. The e-commerce market growth is being driven by increasing consumer confidence in online shopping, and the availability of various payment tools.”

E-commerce payments in Singapore has traditionally been dominated by payment cards and it continued in 2022 also.  Consumers favour credit and charge cards due to the value-added benefits, including interest-free instalment payment options, reward programs, cashback, and discounts.

Payment cards are closely followed by alternative payment tools which collectively account for a 37.9% share in 2022 – up from 30.6% in 2021. Alternative payment solutions such as Apple Pay, PayPal and GrabPay are popular among online shoppers.

Bank transfers are also widely used for ecommerce payments due to convenience and secured payment experience this payment method offers. However, its share is on a decline, falling from 18.4% in 2021 to 15% in 2022 due to preference for cards and alternative payment tools.

Meanwhile, cash share continues to drop due to a growing preference for electronic payments.

Sharma concludes: “Although payment cards continue to lead the online payment space, alternative payment solutions are increasingly being embraced by online shoppers in Singapore, a trend that is prevalent in many other Asian markets.”

*GlobalData’s 2022 Financial Services Consumer Survey was carried out in Q2 2022. Approximately 50,000 respondents aged 18+ were surveyed across 40 countries.