25 May 2021 – Data published by EMVCo shows that at the end of 2020, 10.8 billion EMV® chip cards were in global circulation – an increase of nearly 1 billion compared to the previous twelve months. In addition, EMVCo reports that 66% of all issued cards are EMV, with over 86% of all card-present transactions conducted globally using EMV chip technology.
EMVCo developed the EMV Chip Specifications as a blueprint for chip cards and payment terminals to work together and in the same way, no matter where they were used. This has made seamless and secure chip card payments possible anywhere in the world.
“Surpassing 10 billion EMV cards deployed worldwide clearly reflects the benefits that EMV chip offers to merchants, acquirers, card issuers, businesses and consumers through improved transaction security, reduced counterfeit cards and fraud, and a consistent payment experience,” explains Junya Tanaka, EMVCo Executive Committee Chair. “We are continuing to see significant and sustained momentum for EMV chip technology across all regions, with Asia-Pacific and the United States in particular showing robust growth across both EMV issuance and adoption.”
The role card payments play in facilitating global commerce has been brought into sharp focus over the past 18 months, as consumers and businesses of all sizes have increasingly shifted away from cash.
Tanaka adds: “EMVCo remains committed to the delivery of safe, convenient and reliable payments in-store and online, and is working closely with payment industry stakeholders and technical groups across the world to advance and evolve the EMV Specifications. Our work aims to not only support emerging technologies such as QR Codes and wireless payments, but also the new ways in which consumers engage and pay for goods and services.”
For further insight into EMV chip card adoption rates and the percentage of EMV card-present transactions by region, view the EMVCo infographic here. A full breakdown of the data is available on the EMVCo website.
For information on EMVCo’s 2021 technical priorities, download the Annual Report.
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For further EMVCo media information please contact David Amos / Chloe Smith – Tel: +44 113 3501922 or email: david@iseepr.co.uk / chloe@iseepr.co.uk
EMV® is a registered trademark in the U.S. and other countries and an unregistered trademark elsewhere. The EMV trademark is owned by EMVCo, LLC.
by Carey Ferro