Singapore’s e-commerce market size is expected to reach S$37.5 billion ($28.92 billion) by 2030, growing 8 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from its 2024 estimated value of S$22.8billion ($17.59 billion), according to the 10th edition of the Worldpay Global Payments Report (GPR).

According to the report, digital wallets accounted for over half (53 percent) of global ecommerce transaction value in 2024, while at point of sale (POS) 32 percent of spend was made via digital wallets.

This is expected to continue to rise with digital wallets predicted to represent 65 percent of all e-commerce spend globally by 2030.

Today, Asia Pacific (APAC) is at the forefront in this adoption, with digital wallets becoming a leading online payment method for eight out of 14 APAC markets, including Singapore.

“As demand for seamless and efficient payment experiences continuously grows, digital wallets are set to remain a mainstay in Singapore’s and the APAC region’s payment landscape,” said Phil Pomford, General Manager, Global eCom, APAC, Worldpay.

“APAC consumers have long led the way globally with digital payment adoption. While this has sometimes been skewed by the dominance of digital payments adoption in China, more recently the picture has become more balanced, with Singapore standing out as a regional leader,

“The country’s robust digital infrastructure and tech-savvy population have accelerated the shift, setting a benchmark for other markets in the region,” he added.

Meanwhile, Worldpay’s decade of GPR analysis shows that in Singapore, online spend via digital wallets has grown more than fivefold, increasing from 7 percent of transaction value in 2014 to 39 percent of transaction value in 2024.

While at POS the adoption has been even more significant, increasing from just 1 percent of spend in 2014, to 29 percent in 2024.

The mix of both local and international digital wallet brands provides Singaporean consumers with choice at checkout.

Although digital wallets have soared in popularity, Singaporean consumers remain loyal to cards.

In 2024, cards were the leading choice of payment at POS, representing 51% of all spend, and 50% of online transaction value.

They also dominate within digital wallets, with over 70 percent of Singaporean consumers surveyed indicating cards are their preferred way to fund digital wallets.

The buy now pay later (BNPL) trend is holding strong globally, with BNPL e-commerce value growing from S$3 billion ($2.31 billion) in 2014 to S$458 billion ($353 billion) in 2024.

Worldpay forecasts that globally the BNPL online value will grow at 9 percent CAGR through 2030 to roughly S$777 billion ($599.3 billion).

In 2024 in Singapore, BNPL represented 3 percent of all e-commerce transaction value, with 64 percent of Gen Z and millennial consumers surveyed in Singapore saying they use this as a payment method.

Across APAC, BNPL accounted for 4 percent of all e-commerce spend in 2024.

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