Tap payments account for more than half of transactions in Q1

For the first time, contactless (or tap) accounted for the majority of card present transactions in Canada, according to the MonerisMetrics Quarterly Report released by Moneris Solutions Corporation.

During the first quarter of 2019, contactless payments grew nearly 25 per cent year over year to account for 51.5 per cent of total transactions. Overall credit and debit card spending experienced moderate growth of 2.5 per cent.

For the first time since MonerisMetrics began reporting on spending trends in 2012, tap and pay accounted for 51.5 per cent of all card present transactions, a 24.7 per cent increase year-over-year.

Eight provinces lead the charge in this trend:

• Prince Edward Island (59.2 per cent),


• Manitoba (58.2 per cent),


• Nova Scotia (55.2 per cent),


• Ontario (54.0 per cent),


• British Columbia (53.5 per cent),


• Alberta (52.1 per cent),


• Saskatchewan (51.6 per cent) and


• New Brunswick (51.0 per cent).

"Consumers want to get through a queue quickly, so a fast, simple payment experience is what they're looking for," says Angela Brown, president and CEO of Moneris. "It's never been easier for businesses to start accepting payments via tap. With more banks supporting digital wallets and more devices supporting tap to pay, it's not a surprise that we are seeing contactless transactions surge. Whether it's tap-enabled cards, mobile devices or wearables, Canadians have clearly embraced the tap and go experience."

Across Canada, Alberta (+0.7 per cent), Saskatchewan (+0.6 per cent) and Newfoundland (-2.9 per cent) reported the lowest growth rates in the country. Despite a slow growth rate, Saskatchewan did see a positive increase when compared to the -0.9 per cent growth rate from Q1 2018. Saskatchewan and Manitoba (+2.2 per cent) were the only provinces to see positive year-over-year growth when compared to their growth rates from last year. British Columbia (+3.3 per cent), Quebec (+3 per cent), Ontario (+2.9 per cent), New Brunswick (+2.8 per cent) and Nova Scotia (+2.3 per cent) all saw growth rates lower than 2018.

"While overall growth remains positive, we've definitely seen consumer spending slow in early 2019," said Brown. "This change is consistent with the trending we saw in 2018. However, consumers also appear to be investing in experiences instead of goods in early 2019."