Consumers using Visa online finish transactions more than PayPal

[Chicago] Visa Inc said on Monday online shoppers using its payment service are 17 per cent more likely to complete their purchases than those using PayPal.

Visa Checkout, which allows shoppers to store their payment information without having to re-enter it every time they make a purchase online, said 66 per cent of its enrolled customers completed their transactions after putting items in their shopping cart compared to 49 per cent of PayPal Holdings Inc's Express Checkout customers.

PayPal's online payment service offers a similar convenience by allowing customers to log into their accounts on a merchant's website. PayPal did not immediately respond to Reuters requests seeking comment.

The data was collated for Visa by retail analytics firm ComScore Inc.

Retailers and payment industry experts have often blamed the high rates of unfinished online transactions, after shoppers add items to their shopping carts, on the tiring process of re-entering payment information every time one makes a purchase.

Online payment checkout services which are available on a retailer's website make the payment process easier for customers. It also gives the service provider a slice of every transaction online; the space has recently attracted companies including Apple Inc and Amazon Inc. "What has become more and more pronounced is as the size of the screen gets smaller, whether it's a tablet, mobile or a watch, the less likely it becomes a consumer will finish his purchase," Sam Shrauger, senior vice president of Visa's digital solutions, told Reuters.

This is because entering numbers and letters on small keyboards while holding your credit card in your hand is inconvenient and prone to mistakes.

Mr Shrauger said 60 per cent of shoppers using a computer finish their transactions compared to 45 per cent of tablet users and 20 per cent of mobile shoppers largely due to the hassle of entering shipping and payment data.

Recently, large US retailers including Best Buy Co Inc, Barnes & Noble Inc and Taco Bell have added Visa's payment service on their websites, Mr Shrauger said.

A year since launch, Visa Checkout has 6 million registered users and is now offered by a quarter million merchants and 330 financial institutions globally.

The service, which is available in 16 countries, will enter India next, Mr Shrauger said.

PayPal has 169 million active customer accounts and is available in 203 markets globally.

REUTERS