The modern payments landscape in Latvia is increasingly digital and both consumers and merchants’ preferences are evolving. According to data of the Central Bank, more than two out of three payments are digital.
Underscoring digital growth, merchants expect cash-originated revenue to drop from 34% to 23% over the next 5 years. Further, while cash and payment cards remain the most popular payment options among consumers (more than 8 out of 10 consumers used cash and cards in the past year), other means of payment, such as bank transfers, are available and relatively prevalent, and use of cryptocurrency is higher than the European average.
Underlying it all is a sense of optimism: 78% of Latvian consumers believe Latvia is leading or on par with the rest of Europe when it comes to payments solutions.