Skip to main content
Financial Assistance Hub

New RBA data shows rapid rise in digital payments

New RBA data shows rapid rise in digital payments

9 December 2024

New data released today from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), shows Australians continue to embrace the ease of mobile wallets when making payments.

For the first time, the RBA’s latest monthly retail payments data includes a snapshot of newer payment technology, showing more than 500 million payments were made via mobile wallets in October, totalling over $20 billion.

ABA CEO Anna Bligh said the data demonstrated that customers were continuing to switch to convenient digital banking channels.

“Australia is well and truly in a digital banking boom.” Ms Bligh said.

“Australians have always been at the forefront of adopting new digital technologies, and these latest figures show that banking is no exception.

“This massive surge in mobile wallets demonstrates a clear shift towards digital payment solutions, reflecting the evolving preferences of consumers for faster and more secure payment options.

“Go back a decade, and almost no one was making a digital wallet payment. Now we’re seeing over half a billion payments being made with mobile wallets in just one month.

“With the ongoing surge in digital payments, it’s critical these transactions are subject to the same oversight and consumer protection laws as the rest of the payments system.

“That’s why the ABA supports legislation currently in the Parliament that will ensure Australia’s payments regulatory framework remains fit-for-purpose and covers new entrants into the market.”

View the full data release: https://www.rba.gov.au/payments-and-infrastructure/resources/payments-data.html

Contact: Benn Ayre | [email protected] | 0428 342 325
Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | www.ausbanking.org.au

Latest news

1 / 3
Transcript
ABA opening statement to Senate Select Committee on Productivity in Australia
20 July 2026

Check against delivery Thank you, Chair, and members of the Committee, for the opportunity to appear today. Improving productivity is one of the defining economic challenges facing Australia, and many developed economies. Productivity ultimately determines whether real wages rise, whether Australia remains an attractive place to invest, and whether the next generation is better off… Read more »

Read more
Media Releases
Banks welcome growth mandate for financial regulators
16 July 2026

Australian banks welcome the release of new Statements of Expectations for APRA and ASIC, which put economic growth, proportionate regulation and cutting unnecessary regulatory burden at the centre of how Australia’s financial regulators operate. ABA CEO Simon Birmingham said the inclusion of growth mandates in these new statements is something the banking industry has consistently… Read more »

Read more
Transcript
ABA CEO Simon Birmingham interview on Fear + Greed Podcast with Sean Aylmer
8 July 2026

E&OEPodcastFear + Greed8 July 2026. Topics: Household ownership of banks; Banking as critical infrastructure Sean Aylmer: Welcome to Fear and Greed Q&A, where we ask and answer questions about business, investing, economics, politics and more. I’m Sean Aylmer. We talk plenty about the banks on this podcast. After all, the big four and Macquarie are… Read more »

Read more