Has South Africa Been a Hotbed of Digital Wallet Growth?

The past few years have seen a lot of growth of digital wallets across the world and South Africa has been no exception. In this article, we will explore what digital wallets are, why they have grown in popularity and how South Africa has fared as a hotbed of this innovation.

What are Digital Wallets?

A digital wallet is a system that allows users to store their funds electronically and make payments using an app or website that is connected to a bank. They allow people to make payments without cash or a card. The types of digital wallets vary; in addition to paying for goods and services, people might also use digital wallets to store gift cards, coupons, tickets, and much more.

Examples of Digital Wallets

There are a number of different types of digital wallets. The most common examples of digital wallets are Apple Pay and Google Pay. PayPal has a digital wallet feature, although it is not a digital wallet in itself. The type of digital wallet each user chooses depends on personal preference and which operating system they have access to.

What Can Digital Wallets Be Used for?

There are a number of things that digital wallets can be used for these days. Commonly, they are used for making in-store on online purchases. This can be handy and save a lot of time. But digital wallets can be used for other purposes as well, like storing gift cards, loyalty cards, and membership cards. Users might also use them to keep their tickets for their transport (ie. plane tickets and so forth), and event tickets.

Digital wallets can also be used to deposit money into various websites for various purposes other than traditional goods and services. For example, 10bet live in South Africa recently became available, and there it is also possible to use a digital wallet for payment.

Apple Pay in South Africa

Apple Pay became available in South Africa in 2021. It was the first African country to have Apple Pay available. To use Apple Pay and make payments, users need an Apple device with Apple pay installed. Usually, this app can then be used near a payment terminal. Apple pay can also be used online on many websites. Apple Pay becoming available in South Africa was a welcome development for people wishing to make payments easily without having to carry around a card or cash.

Google Pay in South Africa

South Africa was the first African country to see Google Pay launch. This launch happened in 2022. Google Wallet is used similarly to Apple Pay – it is however used on Android devices. Therefore, to use a Google Wallet, users need an Android device with the Google Pay set up. They can then use it to make purchases online or to make contactless payments in person.

PayPal in South Africa

Although PayPal is not a digital wallet per se, it has a digital wallet feature. PayPal has been available in South Africa since 2010, bringing world-class financial services to South Africans. Users can make purchases and send money using PayPal from their computer or mobile phone. PayPal makes transactions very easy and secure with its buyer protection policy and its security measures in place.

Has South Africa Really Been a Hotbed of Digital Wallet Growth?

In the past few years, many kinds of digital wallets became available in South Africa. These have allowed people to more easily pay for things without the need to carry cash or cards around with them all the time. As mentioned above, examples of digital wallet services that are available in South Africa today are Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal.*

South Africa has, on a number of instances, been the first African country to launch these kinds of services. It has been a good indicator of the country’s readiness to embrace digital payment services and become a leader in the growing world of mobile commerce. Therefore, it could certainly be said that South Africa has indeed been a hotbed of digital wallet growth in recent years.

As we see these recent South African digital developments, we look forward to seeing what else is in store for South Africa regarding technology. It is needless to say that we hope that we will see even more innovations in this area!

*PayPal is not technically a digital wallet but has a digital wallet service available.

Conclusion

The recent surge in digital wallets opening in South Africa has created a great opportunity for citizens to start using alternative payment options, leading to a great surge of popularity. It’s likely we will see this trend continue as digital wallets establish themselves and expand into other African countries.