RIYADH: Payment revenues in Saudi Arabia are expected to reach $28.3 billion by 2031, driven by revenues from current accounts, credit cards, and electronic credit transfers, according to a new report from Boston Consulting Group. The report noted that the compound annual growth of the Kingdom’s overall payments revenue is forecasted to be at 11.2 percent from 2021 to 2031. “In the last few years, Saudi Arabia has experienced high growth in the digital payments sphere as a result of the country’s strategic goals for the financial sector as part of Vision 2030,” said Mohammad Khan, managing director and partner at BCG. He added that the robust regulatory framework along with the adoption of innovative digital transformation solutions by private sector firms in Saudi Arabia is accelerating the growth of payment revenue. He further pointed out the Kingdom is expected to achieve 70 percent domestic adoption of online payments activity by 2025. The BCG report added that the CAGR of overall payments revenue in the Gulf Cooperation Council region is expected to grow by 9.3 percent from 2021 to 2031. “Payments revenues in the GCC will see acceleration on the back of real-time payments infrastructure, a growing number of specialized payments players bringing new solutions to the market, and enabling policies from governments,” Khan added. The BCG report also outlined trends that will shape the outlook for the global payments industry in the future. According to the report, payment players will have to demonstrate solid profitability to attract both customers and investors, as the era of non-profitable growth is over in the sector. The report noted that electronic payments are gaining more popularity, with sustained cash-to-non-cash conversion, the ongoing growth of e-commerce, and the increasing integration of payments into retail and corporate customer journeys driving payments revenues globally. “Central bank digital currencies are gaining momentum. Central banks are tailoring CBDCs to complement cash with digital central bank money to implement monetary policy faster,” the report added. The BCG report further pointed out that payment businesses are now under increasing scrutiny from regulators and market participants should address risk dimensions including financial, compliance, cyber, or crypto to install the required safeguards for their businesses on their path to growth.