Proximity Payment Market Report 2026

The proximity payment market size has grown rapidly in recent years. It will grow from $25.71 billion in 2025 to $29.9 billion in 2026 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.3%. The growth in the historic period can be attributed to growing smartphone penetration, expansion of contactless card infrastructure, rising consumer preference for cashless transactions, increased merchant acceptance of nfc payments, improvements in payment security standards.

The proximity payment market size is expected to see rapid growth in the next few years. It will grow to $54.53 billion in 2030 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.2%. The growth in the forecast period can be attributed to growing adoption of digital wallets, rising integration of biometric authentication, expansion of smart retail ecosystems, increasing demand for seamless omnichannel payments, regulatory support for cashless economies. Major trends in the forecast period include increasing adoption of contactless pos terminals, rising use of mobile wallet-based payments, expansion of wearable payment devices, growing demand for faster checkout experiences, enhanced focus on transaction security and tokenization.

The rising adoption of contactless payment methods is expected to propel the growth of the proximity payment market going forward. Contactless payment refers to a secure method of completing transactions using a payment device, such as a credit or debit card, smartphone, or wearable device, without the need to physically swipe, insert, or hand over the payment instrument. The increase in adoption of contactless payment is due to its convenience and speed, consumer preferences, and security features, drive the adoption of contactless payment systems. Proximity payments facilitate contactless transactions by enabling quick and secure payment processing when devices are nearby. For instance, in January 2024, according to the European Central Bank, a Germany-based central bank of the European Union countries, the number of contactless card payments in the first half of 2023 increased by 24.3% from 20.9 billion in the first half of 2022, with the corresponding total value rising by 25.9% to €0.5 trillion (545.27 billion). Therefore, the rising adoption of contactless payment methods is driving the growth of the proximity payment market.

Major companies operating in the proximity payment market are focusing on developing innovative payment acceptance solutions such as contactless near field communication (NFC) payment technology to improve checkout speed, merchant accessibility, and transaction security in physical retail settings. Contactless NFC payment technology uses near field communication to enable secure tap-to-pay transactions by transmitting encrypted payment information between a customer’s card, smartphone, or wearable and a merchant device over a short distance, offering capabilities such as hardware-free payment acceptance, real-time authorization, and compatibility with multiple digital wallets. For instance, in December 2025, Apple Inc., a US-based technology company, launched Tap to Pay on iPhone in Hong Kong, a contactless NFC-based payment solution that allows merchants to accept in-person payments directly on an iPhone from contactless credit and debit cards, Apple Pay, and other digital wallets, featuring secure NFC transaction processing, integration with payment service providers such as Adyen and Global Payments, and built-in privacy-focused encryption. Tap to Pay on iPhone enhances merchant payment flexibility, streamlines in-store checkout operations, and promotes broader adoption of proximity payments across businesses of all sizes.

In November 2023, European Payments Initiative, a Belgium-based payments company, acquired Payconiq International for an undisclosed amount. With this acquisition, European Payments Initiative aimed to strengthen its pan-European digital payments strategy by integrating Payconiq’s proximity and account-to-account payment capabilities to support the development of a unified European wallet solution. Payconiq International is a Belgium-based payments technology company specializing in mobile-based proximity payment solutions using QR-code and account-to-account payment technology for consumers and merchants across Europe.

Major companies operating in the proximity payment market are Amazon.com Inc., Apple Inc., Google LLC, Samsung Group, Wells Fargo & Company, American Express Company, Visa Inc., PayPal Holdings Inc., The PNC Financial Services Group Inc., Mastercard Inc., Thales Group, Fiserv Inc., Stripe Inc., NXP Semiconductors N.V., Garmin Ltd., Revolut, Worldpay LLC, Adyen N.V., Ingenico, SumUp Inc., PAX Technology, Clover Network LLC, VeriFone Inc., BitPay, Huawei Device Co. Ltd.

North America was the largest region in the proximity payment market in 2025. Europe is expected to be the fastest-growing region in the forecast period. The regions covered in the proximity payment market report are Asia-Pacific, South East Asia, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, Middle East, Africa. The countries covered in the proximity payment market report are Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Taiwan, Russia, South Korea, UK, USA, Canada, Italy, Spain.

The proximity payment market consists of revenues earned by entities by providing services such as digital wallet integration, loyalty and rewards programs, transaction history, and management. The market value includes the value of related goods sold by the service provider or included within the service offering. The proximity payment market also includes sales of payment cards, payment readers, and payment terminals. Values in this market are ‘factory gate’ values, that is, the value of goods sold by the manufacturers or creators of the goods, whether to other entities (including downstream manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, and retailers) or directly to end customers. The value of goods in this market includes related services sold by the creators of the goods.

The market value is defined as the revenues that enterprises gain from the sale of goods and/or services within the specified market and geography through sales, grants, or donations in terms of the currency (in USD unless otherwise specified).

The revenues for a specified geography are consumption values that are revenues generated by organizations in the specified geography within the market, irrespective of where they are produced. It does not include revenues from resales along the supply chain, either further along the supply chain or as part of other products.

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