Market Trends of Europe Virtual Cards Industry
Rising Digital Payment
The digital transaction payments volume in Europe is observing a continuous growth of more than 16% annually with an increasing number of people using Net Banking, UPI, and other emerging payment methods. Post-pandemic almost (2/3) of the consumers in Europe had started using contactless payment more often in comparison to the pre-pandemic level. Cashless payments are becoming an appealing alternative to many European consumers resulting in a significant impact on the payments industry which was traditionally dominated by cash and cheques. The United Kingdom has emerged as the largest e-commerce market in the region with more than half of the transactions being made digitally resulting in an increasing number of E-commerce platforms accepting virtual card payment methods. Along with these trends, with card payment existing as a leading cashless payment method in the region, it is expected to drive the virtual card market over the coming period in the region.
Rising Cyber Attacks & Payment Scams
A unique card detail associated with each transaction made through virtual cards is a development towards cyber risk-related security in digital payment methods. The value of e-commerce losses to online payment fraud in Europe has observed a continuous rise over the years leading to each virtual card being limited with a fixed amount of transaction limit and post transaction or after the expiry date whichever is earlier the card loses its value. Virtual cards exist with a shorter period of expiry date in comparison to regular debit cards and post expiry, the money is returned to the user account resulting in virtual cards emerging as an efficient payment method for businesses who need to deal with multiple transactions at a given point of time. The United Kingdom, Ireland, Denmark, and France exist as the European countries with the largest value of fraud in digital payments and the availability of virtual cards is helping people in the region to reduce these online digital payment risks.
