“The results of the MasterCard Mobile Payments Readiness Index for India are encouraging. There is a marked improvement on the familiarity of P2P payments, m-commerce and POS transactions. The Mobile Payment industry will be largely driven by the young population and India's demographic dividend offers a great prospect”, said T. V. Seshadri, Division President, South Asia, MasterCard Worldwide.

The Index also found that in some markets such as Australia, young affluent consumers between the ages of 18 and 34 years old are the most willing to engage in mobile payments as they recognize the value of using mobile payments instead of cash or payment cards. While this demographic was predominantly male in most countries, women showed higher levels of interest in countries such as China, Egypt and the Philippines.

In addition, findings of the MPRI reveal that partnerships among the key players in the mobile payments ecosystem are essential to accelerate the commercialization of mobile payments. Cooperation and collaboration among financial institutions, telcos, governments, technology providers and others can foster an environment that enables a market to reach critical mass.

“Technology infrastructure, a responsive regulatory environment and a robust economy are table stakes for the advancement of mobile payments,” said Theodore Iacobuzio, vice president, Global Insights, MasterCard Worldwide. “The necessary conditions are consumer readiness and industry integration. As no one entity can develop and promote mobile payments by itself, key players in the ecosystem must work together to collectively advance the cause of mobile payments.”