PayU, the leading payment service provider within fast-growing countries, analyses the transaction trends and potential of the 16 growth markets in which it physically operates in order to further shape the company’s business strategy under new CEO, Laurent Le Moal.

‘’Ecommerce growth within emerging countries is two times bigger than in most established regions’’, states Laurent Le Moal, CEO of PayU. ‘’These evolving markets make way for many business opportunities, provided that merchants adapt their offering to local habits and requirements.’’

Key findings featured in PayU’s overview include the high growth of ecommerce in Africa (more than 65% of Nigerian Internet users shop online1 ), the smartphone penetration in Asia (70% of Indian Internet sessions are made using a smartphone2 ), the cash legacy in Latin America (cash still represents more than 50% of all payments made via PayU in Mexico and Argentina3 ) as well as the dominance of banking transfers in Poland (80% of online payments) and instalments in Turkey (88% of credit- and debit cardbased payments4 ).

‘’Overall, we see a strong shift towardssmartphone-based transactions’’, highlights Mario Shiliashki, Head of PayU Europe, Middle East & Africa. ‘’For 2016, we are building off our local presence and trust to offer smart financial services, starting with lending for consumers & SMBs in credit-seeking regions such as India, Latin America and Eastern Europe”, adds Raj Kamal, Global Head of Strategy & Business Development at PayU.

As consumers and merchants within emerging countries blithely skipped the PC era for obvious logistical reasons, they have also shaped alternative solutions to traditional banking. By offering payment methods adapted to each country’s practices and regulations, PayU has become a reliable partner on the field, now able to build on its global leadership and local expertise in order to provide services beyond payments.