Saudi POS exceeds cash withdrawals for first time; e-commerce makes up 10% of total spending

Electronic payment device

Saudi Arabia’s point-of-sale (POS) transactions exceeded the value of cash withdrawals for the first time in April, according to the Saudi Central Bank's (SAMA) monthly bulletin.

POS transactions amounted to about SAR 49.44 billion, while cash withdrawals’ value reached SAR 47.58 billion.

Total consumer spending grew 12% to SAR 107.3 billion in April from SAR 96.1 billion in the year-earlier period.

Consumer spending includes total cash withdrawals, POS and e-commerce sales through "Mada".

E-commerce through "Mada" accounted for 10% of consumer spending, totaling SAR 10.26 billion.

E-commerce sales include the transactions of "Mada" cards used for payment and purchases through online shopping sites and electronic applications. They do not include transactions made through Visa, MasterCard, or other credit cards.

Consumer Spending in Details
	Value (SAR bln)	Ratio
POS Transaction	49.44	46%
Cash Withdrawals	47.58	44%
E-Commerce Via Mada	10.26	10%
Total	107.29	100%

Data showed that a total of 531.3 million transactions were processed through 1.16 million POS devices in April.

POS transaction represents consumer spending using ATMs and credit cards in shopping malls, retail stores, pharmacies, etc.

The cash withdrawals were processed through 16,400 ATMs via 128.6 million transactions.

According to SAMA's monthly bulletin, these sales were made through 51.8 million transactions.

Previously, SAMA directed banks and payment service providers in the Kingdom to offer means of payment for all personal services and retail sector activities.

The apex bank's strategies for the payments sector and the Financial Sector Development Program (FSDP) target promoting e-payment and reducing cash transactions.

Consumer Spending
Period	POS	Withdrawals	E-Sales	Total	POS	Withdrawals	E-Sales
Period	(SAR bln)				(Percentage of Total)
January 2020	28.53	62.94	1.72	93.19	31 %	68 %	2 %
February	25.93	56.39	1.63	83.95	31 %	67 %	2 %
March	24.79	56.90	1.79	83.49	30 %	68 %	2 %
April	16.18	40.55	3.00	59.72	27 %	68 %	5 %
May	23.45	44.49	3.72	71.66	33 %	62 %	5 %
June	37.02	49.38	3.73	90.13	41 %	55 %	4 %
July	31.51	57.66	3.63	92.80	34 %	62 %	4 %
August	31.15	48.06	3.33	82.54	38 %	58 %	4 %
September	33.21	53.03	3.72	89.96	37 %	59 %	4 %
October	33.64	52.89	3.85	90.37	37 %	59 %	4 %
November	34.26	51.53	4.21	90.00	38 %	57 %	5 %
December	37.62	55.06	4.50	97.18	39 %	57 %	5 %
January 2021	37.27	51.97	4.38	93.62	40 %	56 %	5 %
February	31.05	45.01	4.17	80.23	39 %	56 %	5 %
March	40.84	54.66	5.31	100.81	41 %	54 %	5 %
April	39.17	51.35	5.56	96.07	41 %	53 %	6 %
May	40.27	49.52	5.74	95.53	42 %	52 %	6 %
June	38.70	46.74	5.89	91.33	42 %	51 %	6 %
July	38.85	48.24	6.33	93.42	42 %	52 %	7 %
August	40.97	46.81	6.87	94.65	43 %	49 %	7 %
September	40.00	45.69	7.02	92.71	43 %	49 %	8 %
October	40.47	47.11	7.17	94.75	43 %	50 %	8 %
November	41.28	46.02	7.72	95.02	43 %	48 %	8 %
December	44.37	48.83	8.16	101.36	44 %	48 %	8 %
January 2022	43.56	45.82	8.23	97.60	45 %	47 %	8 %
February	38.88	41.67	8.02	88.57	44 %	47 %	9 %
March	51.00	52.83	9.98	113.81	45 %	46 %	9 %
April	49.44	47.58	10.26	107.29	46 %	44 %	10 %

Details and Historical Data of Consumer Spending

Economic Reports

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