QR codes are helping Singapore continue on its road to a cashless society, data and analytics company GlobalData believes.
Blessed with a strong payments infrastructure system, Singapore has both POS and QR code payment capability, and the latter is becoming a more trusted and preferred payment methods for consumers. In a country of 5.9 million, Singapore has 254,469 payment terminals now and is expected to reach 316,695 in 2024.
“Singapore has 44 POS terminals per 1,000 individuals in 2021, among the highest in the Asia-Pacific region,” said Nikhil Reddy, banking and payments analyst at GlobalData. “The government is also playing its part to drive the acceptance of electronic payments among merchants in Singapore.”
Singapore’s government provides grants to local businesses to assist with POS installation. That rate will be 80 per cent until March 2022 to encourage safe pandemic spending methods. Smaller businesses including hawkers are encouraged to employ QR code-based payments. The Singapore Quick Response Code (SGQR) debuted in September 2018 and saves businesses money due to only having to use a single system. The government is covering all transaction fees incurred by hawkers through the end of 2023 to encourage SGQR’s adoption in that sector.
“Singapore merchants are increasingly turning to digital payments amid COVID-19,” Reddy added. “The outbreak has accelerated adoption of digital payments among smaller merchants as well, thereby supporting Singapore government’s vision to become a ‘less-cash’ society.”
