Electronic payments exceeded the use of cash for the first time in Saudi Arabia in 2021, a study conducted by Saudi Arabia’s Central Bank found.
E-payments represented 94 percent of all payments when measured by value, the study found, which was reported in Arab News. In terms of volume, the use of electronic payments increased to 62 percent last year from 44 percent in 2019 across all areas of economic activities.
The study “indicated that cash is no longer the most used method of payment by individuals for the first time in the Kingdom. This comes as electronic payments of individuals have grown significantly to reach 57 percent in 2021 of the total number of transactions executed, compared to just 36 percent in 2019,” Arab News reports.
In the private sector, the share of e-payments reached a substantial 84 percent of all business payments in 2021, up from 51 percent in 2019, recording a growth of 65 percent over the two years.
