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Doha, Qatar: Qatar’s e-commerce market is showing a significant growth rate and gaining momentum as it is widening opportunities in various sectors to expand further. Qatar Central Bank (QCB) revealed the details of the point of sale (POS) and e-commerce transactions in Qatar for February this year.
In a series of posts on its social media handle QCB stated that the volume of e-commerce transactions reached 6.02 million transactions in February 2024 with a value of QR3.06bn showing a surge in value of POS transactions by 29 percent and 50 percent respectively when compared on a year-on-year basis to 2023 and 2022.
The volume of e-commerce transactions in Qatar stood at 4.51 million and 3.53 million in February 2023 and 2022 respectively.
The post also noted that the volume of POS transactions reached 33.41 million in February 2024 with a value of QR7.90bn in February 2024 against QR6.45bn and QR5.22bn respectively in February 2023 and 2022 representing a jump of 18 percent and 51 percent on yearly basis. While the volume of POS transactions in Qatar in February stood at 26.50 million in 2023 and 19.53 million in 2022.
QCB also revealed the number of POS devices in Qatar reached 68,963 in February 2024. While in February 2023 and 2022 it totaled 62,624 and 49,422 respectively.
Revealing the details on the total count of active cards, it stated there are 2,149,282 debit cards, 676,095 credit cards, and 708,370 prepaid cards in February 2024.
PoS solution provides innovative, secure, and highly efficient payment processing services as it supports contactless card transactions, eWallet, mobile PoS (mPOS), QR code scanner, and online billing and settlement.
Qatar’s e-commerce market is set to scale new heights as the boom in country’s e-commerce market will continue with growing number of retailers and consumers shifting to online platforms. There is also significant increase in the demand for digital banking products and services.
The pandemic has accelerated the pace of digital adoption in the country. Many consumers who were so far hesitant in using digital payment channels, have started embracing online payments. The high penetration of Internet services has worked in favour of boosting e-commerce in Qatar.
Last year QCB officially launched, ‘Himyan’, the first national prepaid card with a registered trademark in Qatar. The national prepaid card is available at banks and can be used at all point of sale, ATMs, and online e-commerce transactions within the country.
The initiative is in line with QCB’s efforts to develop electronic payments system in Qatar and enhance the financial inclusion in the country.
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