More consumers pay at the checkout with their cell phone: Reached more than NIS 1 billion

More consumers pay at the checkout with their cell phone or smartwatch instead of pulling out a credit card: For the first time, spending on digital wallets - the apps that allow such payment - has reached more than NIS 1 billion, according to data from an automated banking services company in Israel. Acquisitions through the approximation or linking of the cell phone to the cash register in April amounted to NIS 1.034 billion. This is an increase of 18% compared to March, when purchases amounted to NIS 876.62 million.
The Automotive Banking Services Company notes that the increase in expenses in digital wallets during April was greater than the increase in expenses in physical transactions that grew last month by 6.1% compared to March 2022. Total expenses in physical transactions amounted to 16.302 billion, so expenses in digital wallets accounted for only 6.3% of total expenses In physical transactions in April 2022.
The turning point in the market was the Google Pay digital wallet, which entered Israel in December 2021. Since its entry, Israelis' spending on digital wallets has grown by 74.5%. Time has also done its thing and more Israelis are using their cell phones or smartphones instead of credit cards due to the convenience of use, the technological ease and the sense of technological superiority.
Earlier, in May 2021, Apple's digital wallet, Apple Pay, began operating in the country, raising the rate of users in this form of payment, but Google has given the segment more significant growth because it caters to a wider audience.
While Apple Pay users must be iPhone, iPad or Apple Watch holders, the Google Pay app can be installed on many types of tablets, watches and smartphones. A year before the arrival of Apple Pay in Israel, digital wallets from credit companies such as Isracard and Max had already started operating in Israel, but the field only began to gain momentum and awareness when Apple entered Israel with its service.