Visa Singapore launches online checkout service

VISA Singapore on Wednesday launched a one-stop payment service that it hopes will address the high percentage of online transactions that are cancelled due to hassles at the point of payment.

The service, known as Visa Checkout, captures and populates consumers' payment details for online shopping. It will allow registered users to pay for their online shopping through a single payment point for merchants that have signed on with the service.

This means that customers will not have to register with numerous online retailers, or fill in card details for every transaction. This latest checkout service will come alongside MasterCard's MasterPass, and PayPal.

Two in three Singaporean shoppers have abandoned a purchase because it took too much time to complete the payment process, data from Visa showed. Most of these transactions are on mobile devices.

"As more people start to spend more time and money online, particularly using mobile devices, they are also demanding a fast, secure and frictionless way to shop online," said Ooi Huey Tyng, Visa country manager for Singapore and Brunei.

Online retailers that offer the service include Golden Village, Cold Storage, and Aviva. NTUC FairPrice and Zuji are due to sign on soon.

Visa has the lion's share of the card issuing market.