Contactless Payment Market to Reach USD 34.1 Billion by 2035, Driven by Mobile Wallets, Wearables, and SoftPOS Expansion

Contactless Payment Market to Reach USD 34.1 Billion by 2035, Driven by Mobile Wallets, Wearables, and SoftPOS Expansion
The global Contactless Payment Market is projected to grow from USD 13.2 billion in 2025 to USD 34.1 billion by 2035, expanding at a CAGR of 9.0%. This growth is fueled by the increasing adoption of mobile wallets, the expansion of wearable-based payments, and the rise of SoftPOS (software point-of-sale) solutions that democratize merchant acceptance worldwide.

MarketGenics highlights Asia Pacific as the most attractive region, powered by smartphone penetration, QR-based payment ecosystems, and government-backed digital inclusion agendas.

Get the Detailed Industry Analysis (including the Table of Contents, List of Figures, and List of Tables) - from the Contactless Payment Market Research Report: https://marketgenics.co/press-releases/contactless-payment-market-65025

Recent Developments Shaping the Market
Visa's "Tap to Everything" Strategy (March 2025)

Visa expanded contactless beyond retail, embedding NFC into wearables, fitness devices, and parking meters across North America and Europe. CEO Ryan McInerney emphasized its goal of driving everyday use-cases for tap-to-pay, normalizing contactless in daily life.

Transit Integration - BART's "Tap and Ride" (August 2025)

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) enabled direct fare payments via contactless cards and mobile wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay, showcasing the deepening role of contactless in urban mobility ecosystems.

SoftPOS Momentum - Stripe and SumUp

Stripe launched Tap to Pay on Android in multiple European countries in 2024, while SumUp rolled out SoftPOS in Latin America for micro-merchants. These solutions turn smartphones into payment terminals, lowering costs for SMEs and boosting global merchant adoption.

Biometric Cards - Mastercard & ING (March 2024)

Mastercard partnered with ING to launch biometric contactless cards featuring fingerprint authentication, strengthening both security and transaction speed across retail and banking.

Market Outlook to 2035
The market is set to generate USD 21 billion in incremental opportunities by 2035. Growth will be driven by:

Mobile-first adoption in emerging markets, where QR and NFC wallets are becoming mainstream.

Wearable-driven payments, extending contactless into fitness, retail, and transportation.

Urban mobility integration, embedding payments in transit and smart-city infrastructure.

By 2035, contactless will be ubiquitous across retail, transport, and services, shaping the cashless future of both developed and emerging economies.

To know more about the Contactless Payment Market - Download our Sample Report: https://marketgenics.co/download-report-sample/contactless-payment-market-65025

Key Drivers, Challenges, and Opportunities
Driver - Wearable Payment Adoption

Smartwatches and fitness trackers with embedded NFC are expanding tap-to-pay use-cases.

Apple Pay on Apple Watch Series 9 introduced advanced tokenization and biometric authentication for secure wrist-based payments.

Samsung's Galaxy Watch series integrated Samsung Pay across Europe and Asia, enabling broader banking partnerships.

Wearables blend health, connectivity, and payments into a single device, accelerating consumer adoption.

Restraint - Cybersecurity & Privacy Risks

Contactless payments remain vulnerable to fraud and data breaches, especially in high-volume public spaces.

In 2024, Visa reported increased fraud cases in Latin America, prompting enhanced token lifecycle management algorithms.
Regulatory frameworks such as GDPR and PCI DSS v4.0 are tightening compliance, but concerns around fraud may slow adoption in developing economies.

Opportunity - Transit & Smart City Integration

Embedding contactless into urban mobility is a powerful growth lever.

Mastercard + Delhi Metro (2025): Enabled seamless interoperability across buses, metros, and suburban rail.

NXP MIFARE 2GO: Rolled out mobile ticketing across Amsterdam and Vienna, improving convenience for commuters and data insights for city planners.

As smart cities expand, contactless becomes an essential backbone for mobility, retail, and public services.

Key Trend - SoftPOS Democratization

SoftPOS (software-based POS) is reshaping merchant acceptance by turning any smartphone into a payment terminal.

Stripe's Tap to Pay on Android and SumUp's Latin American rollouts allow small businesses and gig workers to accept NFC payments without extra hardware.

This trend expands reach into micro-merchant and emerging economy segments, driving faster ecosystem penetration.

Buy Now: https://marketgenics.co/buy/contactless-payment-market-65025

Segmental Insights
Mobile Devices Lead with ~45% Share

Smartphones using NFC or QR dominate contactless transactions.

Google Wallet expansion (2024): Rolled out in 60+ countries, adding biometric authentication and offline NFC capabilities.

UPI-linked QR interoperability (Paytm, India, 2024): Boosted adoption in retail and transit.

Mobile devices remain the anchor for scaling contactless, combining ubiquity with security.

Regional Highlights
Asia Pacific (Largest & Fastest-Growing)

Governments push cashless economies via QR and NFC systems.

Singapore's SGQR system processed >95% of retail contactless transactions by 2024.

Alipay+ in Southeast Asia enabled cross-border QR payments for tourists and locals.

North America & Europe

Early adoption of NFC cards and wearables, now expanding into urban mobility and SoftPOS ecosystems.

BART and Visa projects illustrate transit and lifestyle integrations.

Middle East & Africa

Growing adoption in fintech-driven markets, supported by government-backed digital identity and mobile-first banking.

Competitive Landscape
The market is highly consolidated, with the top five players controlling 78% share in 2025.

Tier 1 Leaders:

Visa Inc., Mastercard, American Express, UnionPay, Apple Pay

Tier 2/3 Innovators:

Stripe, Verifone, SumUp, fintech disruptors

Recent Updates:

June 2025: NFC Forum Release 15 extended tap range from ~0.5 cm to ~2 cm, improving reliability for wearables and small devices.

July 2025: Mastercard + Eastern Bank PLC launched the world's first biometric metal card with fingerprint authentication for EMV contactless transactions.

Get a preview of our Contactless Payment Market Playbook - your guide to GTM strategy, competitive intelligence, supplier dynamics, and Consumer Behavior Analysis: https://marketgenics.co/playbook/contactless-payment-market-65025

Future Outlook
By 2035, contactless will be embedded in daily consumer life, with:

SoftPOS scaling SMEs in emerging markets

Wearable biometrics replacing PINs and passwords

Urban mobility acting as the gateway to mass adoption

Omnichannel wallets (mobile + wearable + IoT) ensuring seamless cross-border interoperability

The convergence of security, convenience, and digital identity will make contactless payments central to the global fintech ecosystem.

About Us

MarketGenics is a global market research and management consulting company empowering decision makers across healthcare, technology, and policy domains. Our mission is to deliver granular market intelligence combined with strategic foresight to accelerate sustainable growth.

We support clients across strategy development, product innovation, healthcare infrastructure, and digital transformation.

Contact:

Mr. Debashish Roy

MarketGenics India Pvt. Ltd.

800 N King Street, Suite 304 #4208, Wilmington, DE 19801, United States

USA: +1 (302) 303-2617

Email: sales@marketgenics.co

Website: https://marketgenics.co

This release was published on openPR.