Visa Europe to invest €216m in digital payments in 2015

2014 was arguably the most eventful year in Visa Europe’s history,” says CEO Nicholas Huss. “Has there ever been a more interesting time to work in the world of payments?

Making his comments in Visa Europe’s just-released annual report, Huss points to the creation of the card issuer’s Digital Business Unit as well as increasing numbers of POS devices and contactless cards as main drivers behind the company’s growth. Visa Europe has also benefitted greatly from broader innovation in the payments sector this year, securing 71 major deals with new partner companies across the continent.

He added that Visa Europe would continue to capitalise on consumer appetite for alternative payments by investing a further €216m in its digital annual investment programme.

Competition is coming from many new and often unexpected sources. New technologies are being adopted at breakneck speed. Meanwhile, regulatory changes are accelerating and consumer expectation is spiralling ever upwards,” said Huss.

This is a complex and challenging environment for any payments business. Even so, there are definite opportunities for Visa Europe, with the potential to accelerate cash displacement, enable the development of innovative products, increase our share of the payments market and strengthen our financial position.”

Following a year of upheaval, this month Visa was named the world’s 7th most valuable brand, reflecting a high level customer trust and recognition spills over to its European counterparts. Its success in 2014 can largely be attributed to a spate of new payment innovations as well as a willingness to work closely with emerging payment platforms, increasingly its revenue sources in the process.

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