Worldpay, a global leader in payments technology across 100+ markets, has released its 10th annual Global Payments Report, offering a clear signal to subscription executives: the future of commerce hinges on digital, mobile, and real-time payments.

Now in its 10th edition, the Worldpay Global Payments Report is based on data from 40 key global markets, providing a decade-long view of consumer payment behavior. The report combines proprietary transactional data and third-party research, making it one of the most comprehensive resources on global payment trends.

Among the most critical findings:

• Digital payments now dominate e-commerce, growing from 34% of global transaction value in 2014 to 66% in 2024, and projected to hit 79% by 2030.
• Mobile is king. More than 57% of global e-commerce now happens on smartphones—tripling since 2014—and that’s expected to reach 64% by 2030.
• Real-time account-to-account (A2A) payments are accelerating, especially in markets like Brazil (Pix) and India (UPI), where they already rival or surpass card usage.
• Digital wallets like Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, and Alipay processed over $15.7 trillion globally in 2024, up nearly 10x from 2014.

For subscription businesses that depend on frictionless, recurring revenue, these are more than stats—according to Worldpay, they’re a mandate.

“The GPR allows merchants to understand what payments they should be accepting in their sector to make sure they have the right options for their customers,” said James Fry, Head of Enterprise Product at Worldpay.

INSIDER TAKE

Worldpay’s 2025 report isn’t just a snapshot of payment trends—it’s a clear call to action for subscription businesses.

The data confirms what many in the subscription economy have already sensed: digital wallets and real-time bank transfers are no longer ‘emerging’—they’re expected. With 66% of global e-commerce already flowing through digital payment methods, subscription brands that haven’t adapted their billing systems are behind the curve.

This shift brings both opportunity and risk:

• Opportunity: Offering native mobile wallet support and flexible A2A options reduces churn, supports cross-border growth, and improves cash flow.
• Risk: Relying solely on cards or outdated billing flows can create friction at sign-up or renewal, especially on mobile, where over half of transactions now occur.

The report also reinforces the growing importance of payment orchestration—intelligently routing transactions to the right method, for the right user, in the right market.

In short, the payment experience is now central to the customer experience. If your checkout flow is clunky or your billing logic can’t accommodate local wallets or real-time payments, you’re not just losing conversions—you’re sending customers straight to your competitors.

As Worldpay’s decade of data shows, subscription businesses that modernize now will be the ones positioned to scale in a payments ecosystem that’s only getting faster, more mobile, and more flexible.