Over 1.5 billion contactless point of sale (POS) payments, valued at €26.7 billion, were made in shops, restaurants and other retail outlets in 2024, according to the latest payments analysis published today in Banking & Payments Federation Ireland's (BPFI) Payments Monitor.

The report reveals that contactless payments accounted for 87.1% of all POS card payments in 2024, with more than half of all contactless payments now made using mobile wallets such as Apple Pay or Google Pay rather than cards.

A consumer survey on payment behaviour in Ireland, conducted by BPFI for the report, also shows that most consumers are aware of and confident in using many banking and payment technologies, such as instant payments and facial recognition. However, less than half are familiar with open banking services, which enable customers to share their banking data with third parties to provide additional financial management tools, while only a quarter of consumers are aware of plans for a digital euro.

Speaking on the publication of the latest Payments Monitor, Gillian Byrne, Head of Payments, BPFI stated: "We can see from today's report that contactless payments continue to be very popular with Irish consumers, accounting for almost 90% of all point of sale (POS) card payments made in shops, restaurants and other retail outlets in Ireland last year. Smartphones and watches have emerged as the preferred payment devices over physical cards for many consumers. Out of 296 contactless payments made per person in Ireland on Irish cards in 2024, 159 of these were mobile wallet payments."

Ms Byrne added: "The rapid adoption of mobile wallets is not surprising given that Irish consumers have traditionally embraced new banking and payments technology. For example, almost 85% of adults used internet banking in 2024, according to Eurostat, the fifth highest proportion in the EU, and our consumer research published today as part of the report shows most consumers are aware of and confident in using many banking and payment technologies such as instant payments and facial recognition for making payment or accessing mobile banking."

"However, the survey also reveals some gaps, with only 25% of respondents stating that they were aware of open banking tools such as account information services that give a third-party provider access to their bank account to analyse their spending, and only 40% of those who knew about them (i.e. about 10% of all respondents) said they would be confident using them.

Furthermore, only one in four respondents were aware of a potential plan for a digital euro, which will be a digital form of cash, despite the fact that proposals for a digital euro date back to 2020. The European Central Bank (ECB) launched its digital euro project in July 2021 and will decide in October whether to move on to the next phase."

She concluded: "These results highlight the need for greater consumer awareness of open banking, as recommended in the Department of Finance's National Payment Strategy, as well as the need to raise awareness about the digital euro and its potential impact. It also shows the need for enhanced consumer confidence in new financial technologies, especially among older consumers who consistently reported the lowest levels of awareness and confidence in newer banking and payment technologies."

The BPFI Payments Monitor March 2025 is available to download here.