Visa (NYSE: V) announced that Tap to Phone has experienced “a 200% increase over the past year, supporting millions of sellers of all sizes.”
In the highest Tap to Phone countries – the U.S., UK, and Brazil – adoption rates have surged, “showing a combined growth rate of 234%.”
Tap to Phone expanded Visa’s tap capabilities with “a technology that turns a smartphone into a point-of-sale (POS) device, simply by downloading an app.”
With nearly 30% of Tap sellers being new small businesses, this technology is helping to democratize “access to commerce tools and empower microsellers and SMBs around the world to start accepting contactless payments by using their NFC-enabled smartphones.”
Mark Nelsen, Global Head of Consumer Products, Visa said:
“Tap to Phone is a tech equalizer for businesses. Walk into some of the world’s largest retailers or go to your local farmer’s market and they’re using this same technology to accept payments right on their phone. People love to tap, so we’re continuing to expand our tap capabilities to create the best payments experiences for people and businesses.”
Whether a merchant is popping up at a local market or a major retailer equips employees to assist customers on the floor, Tap to Phone “helps businesses of all sizes easily accept payments.”
Small business owners say Tap to Phone “gives them more confidence, makes their operation feel more sophisticated, and helps them grow their businesses.”
This upward trend for Tap to Phone is expected to “continue through the next year as more consumers and businesses may begin to recognize the benefits of tap technology and more use cases may hit the market.”
For example, Tap to Add Card enables users to “add eligible credit or debit cards to their digital wallet by simply tapping a card to their phone.”
Since Tap to Add Card rolled out globally with Apple Pay in September 2024, it has picked up traction and “enabled millions of tokens for more than 100 issuers, helping achieve higher authorization rates and fraud reduction rates. Visa cardholders can add their Visa cards to Apple Wallet faster than ever, with no need to manually input card details.”
Visa has reportedly developed Tap to Confirm, which allows consumers to quickly and securely “authenticate a high value transfer and Tap to Send and Request money, a feature that allows you to tap your physical card or card credential to a device wallet on a friend’s phone to securely send and receive money quickly and seamlessly.”
Tap to Send will be available later this year “on Samsung Galaxy devices as ‘Tap to Transfer.”