How Procurement Must Shift as Mobile Wallets Become the Norm

The way UK consumers pay is moving rapidly to mobile. UK Finance reports that 57% of adults used mobile wallets in 2024, up from 42% in 2023, with card payments accounting for 64% of all transactions.

Of 26.1 billion debit card payments, 18.9 billion were contactless.

That pace is transforming demand patterns, checkout speed and delivery expectations, which in turn reshapes supplier selection, service levels and cost models.

“2024 was a year of firsts, all pointing to the growing shift towards digital payments,” says Adrian Buckle, Head of Research at UK Finance.

“More than half of UK adults used mobile wallets, mobile banking overtook desktop as the main way people access their accounts and cash fell below 10% of all payments.”

The data offered by Adrian underscores a procurement imperative: payments are now an infrastructure decision, not a till upgrade.

Payments choice is now a sourcing decision

Mobile wallets and BNPL have become table stakes. Retailers that do not support Apple Pay, Google Pay or leading BNPL providers risk conversion losses in store and online.

Procurement teams would be well placed to run competitive tenders for acquirers, gateways and BNPL partners with clear criteria on wallet coverage, tokenisation, fraud rates, chargeback handling, dispute SLAs, data portability and open banking readiness.

Total cost of acceptance must be modelled by channel and basket size to reflect contactless heavy usage and “micro-purchase” peaks.

Integrate payments data with ERP, OMS and WMS

Mobile-led journeys blur physical and digital, so payments platforms must interoperate with ecommerce, POS, loyalty and inventory systems.

Procurement should specify real-time APIs, unified customer IDs and tokenised credentials that enable click and collect, ship from store and cross-channel refunds without manual workarounds.

Supplier scorecards should include uptime, latency and reconciliation accuracy given faster settlement cycles.

Design last-mile and micro-fulfilment for speed and volatility

Faster taps mean faster throughput at front of house and shorter order cycles online.

That creates spikier picking and delivery demand. Contracts with parcel carriers and same day partners should bake in flexible capacity bands, time-slot performance and surge pricing guardrails.

Sourcing micro-fulfilment or dark store capability near demand clusters can cut lead times, but needs clear ownership of inventory accuracy and backhaul utilisation.

Reverse logistics grows with BNPL

BNPL use has climbed to 25% of UK adults from 14%, with fashion making up 46% of these transactions and an average spend of US$114. Higher try-at-home behaviour lifts returns volumes and complexity.

Procurement should rebid reverse logistics and refurbishment services with targets on turnaround time, resale yield and waste reduction, and ensure BNPL integrations support instant refunds without creating cash flow gaps.

Warehouse partners may need extra grading and re-boxing capacity tied to peak calendars.

Plan for regulation and faster payments

New BNPL affordability checks due in 2026 will alter conversion and returns patterns in discretionary categories.

Payment providers should be contracted for compliance change delivery, reporting and customer comms support. With faster payments adoption rising, settlement windows will shorten.

Treasury and procurement should align on supplier terms, dynamic discounting and supply chain finance to optimise working capital without stressing small vendors.

Inclusion and the declining cash base

Cash fell to 4.4 billion payments in 2024 from six billion in 2023, dipping under 10% of transactions for the first time.

About 1.2 million adults still rely on cash, yet older shoppers are adopting wallets fast, with 65+ registration rising from 14% to 25%.

Procurement must balance inclusive options with digital-first design. Maintain appropriate cash handling and customer support services where needed, while specifying delivery options that suit less digitally confident users such as scheduled windows or assisted services.

What procurement should do next

• Run a multi-lot RFP for acquirers, gateways, wallets and BNPL with clear SLAs, data rights and open banking capabilities
• Recut carrier and reverse logistics agreements around surge flexibility, return throughput and recovery rates
• Invest in payment data integration with ERP, OMS and WMS to enable unified journeys and clean reconciliation
• Model total cost to serve under mobile-heavy demand, then rebalance store, micro-fulfilment and carrier mix
• Align payment settlement changes with supplier payment terms and supply chain finance

Card payments are forecast to reach 67% of transactions by 2034, with contactless at 43%. Pay by Bank could accelerate change if adoption widens.

Procurement that secures flexible, interoperable and cost-disciplined payments and logistics partners will be best placed as customers tap screens, not tills.