European millennials demand higher standards for mobile payments services

Barclays cards now work with Apple Pay
CUSTOMER DEMAND: Millennials have set the bar high on mobile payments standards

One fifth of German millennials (21%), more than a third of Dutch millennials (36%) and Italian millennials (37%) and a quarter of UK millennials (25%) are now making mobile payments in-store, online and in-app, research released by UK payments infrastructure operator VocaLink reveals.

In the UK, Apple Pay is the most well-known mobile payments platform with 84% awareness, followed by PayPal with 74%. However, only 2% of UK respondents have made a payment using Apple Pay. Two fifths of millennials in Italy and Germany have heard of Apple Pay, and 29% of Dutch millennials are aware of the service.

The survey — based on the responses of 4,000 consumers aged 18-34 across Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK — finds that in all four countries millennials would prefer to see mobile payments services delivered by either their banks — especially in the Netherlands and the UK — or by PayPal (Germany and Italy).

Other findings reveal:

  • 55% of German millennials have never used mobile payment technology, while 70% prefer paying for groceries in cash vs 61% on card;
  • 58% of UK respondents would prefer to use a mobile payment service provided by their bank, followed by PayPal with 49%;
  • One in 11 UK millennials are now paying for car parking using mobile payments;
  • Less than half of British and German millennials (42%) said they would use eye scans to verify payments;
  • 71% of Dutch millennials have heard of the Dutch payment method iDeal and are already using it;
  • 71% of Italian millennials would like to be able to see their available balance to spend when making a mobile payment.

70% of US millennials are more likely to use a new mobile payment service if it was provided by their own bank, rather than an alternative payment service provider, US-focused research conducted by VocaLink also reveals. 67% of US respondents would use fingerprint recognition to make a payment in the future.

“Speed is key, with more than half of people from all four of the European countries surveyed agreeing that they would like to be able to make instant payments, regardless of who they bank with,” the research adds. “This was also echoed in the US, where the figure was up to almost three quarters agreed with the same statement.”

‘Substance over style’

“The millennial generation is quite rightly pushing the payments industry to drive high quality innovation, currently dissatisfied with what is available today,” says Cara O’Nions, director of marketing and customer insights at VocaLink.

“While payment preferences differ across the world, our research shows that in nearly all cases, millennials are consistently looking for substance over style — technology that is seamless and secure and allows them to make payments instantly.”

“Payments are a core and critical part of everyday life and it is clear that this group has set the bar high in terms of expectations and will only embrace new payment technology that can demonstrate ubiquity, speed, ease of use and security,” O’Nions adds.

“It is particularly interesting to see that millennials would prefer to remain with traditional payment providers while they are waiting for advancements in the market. If they were to consider mobile payments in the future, the majority would prefer that this was offered by their bank.”

Next: Visit the NFCW Expo to find new suppliers and solutions