RIYADH: The Kingdom’s digital payment ecosystem is growing quickly, as seen by the 73.4 percent year-over-year increase in e-commerce purchases made using MADA cards in March, which reached a record SR27.55 billion ($7.34 billion). According to the Saudi Central Bank, generally known as SAMA, online transactions over the national card network totalled 147.6 million for the month, increasing 54.5 percent from March 2024.
The numbers do not include transactions made with Visa, MasterCard, or other foreign networks; instead, they represent transactions made through MADA-connected websites, mobile applications, and e-wallets.
MADA A rising percentage of Saudi Arabia’s non-cash economy is supported by the Kingdom’s domestic debit card network, making safe, contactless payments using NFC technology possible online and in physical stores. Growing fintech ecosystems, increased consumer trust, and national investments in financial technology integration all contribute to the expansion of digital commerce.
In an effort to expand digitally, SAMA and Google inked a deal in April to use the MADA infrastructure to launch Google Pay in Saudi Arabia. Thanks to the integration, which is anticipated to arrive later this year and provide safe and easy transactions across websites, mobile applications, and physical locations, users will be able to add and manage their MADA-linked cards via Google Wallet. SAMA claims that this step is a component of a larger initiative to build a strong digital payments infrastructure and lessen the nation’s reliance on cash transactions.
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