The Covid-19 pandemic is encouraging businesses to deploy technologies that will boost the digital payments business from $4.4 trillion this year to $8.26 trillion in 2024, according to Statista. Victor Besa / The National
The Covid-19 pandemic is encouraging businesses to deploy technologies that will boost the digital payments business from $4.4 trillion this year to $8.26 trillion in 2024, according to Statista. Victor Besa / The National
The Covid-19 pandemic is encouraging businesses to deploy technologies that will boost the digital payments business from $4.4 trillion this year to $8.26 trillion in 2024, according to Statista. Victor Besa / The National
The Covid-19 pandemic is encouraging businesses to deploy technologies that will boost the digital payments business from $4.4 trillion this year to $8.26 trillion in 2024, according to Statista. Vict

What a cashless society could look like


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The Covid-19 pandemic has spurred the rapid adoption of digital payments worldwide to meet soaring demand for contactless transactions, and the UAE is adapting to the "tectonic shift" faster than experts expected.

Technologies such as biometric identification and Quick Response (QR) codes are evolving as the next modes of payment, according to retail, technology and credit card companies.

"The introduction of biometrics, especially facial recognition, may emerge as a popular payment mechanism," Arjun Vir Singh, executive vice president of cards and payments at Dubai conglomerate Al-Futtaim Group, tells The National.

“You become the form-factor, you no longer need to even take out your phone,” he said.

This week, Amazon made that future a reality, as it introduced a payment-enabling palm scanner. The product, which links the characteristics of a person's palm to their Amazon account, will be tested at two of the company's physical stores in Seattle.

Using biometric data for commercial purposes goes all the way back to 1839, when a deed of sale on a house in China was signed with a fingerprint, according to Dr Anil K Jain, a board member of Mohamed Bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence.

Back then, it addressed issues of illiteracy. Today, the use of biometric data to initiate payments by mobile phone are expected to secure $2.5 trillion by 2024 from the $228 million forecast for 2019, according to UK-based Juniper Research.

About 90 per cent of smartphones will have some form of dedicated biometric hardware in the next four years, enabling payment by phone, facial recognition or a thumbprint scan, according to Juniper.

As the global economy emerges from what has been touted as the deepest recession since the Great Depression, analysts predict the uptake of digital payments will accelerate with the economic rebound.

In the UAE, consumers are anticipating a shift. Two-thirds of people expect the country to become fully cashless by 2030, according to a new poll by Standard Chartered.

Biometric authentication will be used to secure $2.5 trillion in mobile payment transactions by 2024. Reem Mohammed / The National
Biometric authentication will be used to secure $2.5 trillion in mobile payment transactions by 2024. Reem Mohammed / The National

"The checkout experience has changed for good and we expect this trend to stay," Khalid Elgibali, Mastercard's division president for Middle East and North Africa, told The National.

“While previously driven by convenience, the concerns around public health and hygiene have accelerated this [transition] exponentially.”

Abu Dhabi-based PayBy, which launched mobile payment services in March, is offering a peer-to-peer transfer feature that scans a user’s QR code and conducts cashless transactions without sharing private data.

A QR Code is a square barcode that contains machine-scannable data that can be read by smartphones. The information stored in the code can be used to make a call, make payments, open a website and for many other applications.

"We expect digital payments to eventually overtake most cash usage as consumers favour convenience and a seamless checkout experience," Sebastian Reis, executive vice president of global e-commerce at Checkout.com, told The National.

Checkout.com offers connected payment solutions for many of the region’s leading brands including Careem, Deliveroo, Zomato and Hungerstation.

The road ahead needs to be marked by greater safety, security, speed and convenience, driven by industry players providing and supporting the digital payments infrastructure, experts said.

The pandemic was a “tectonic shift” in payments, said Akshay Chopra, head of innovation and design for Central Europe, Middle East and Africa, at Visa.

Three out of four UAE consumers will prefer a store where they don’t need to interact with a cashier and will gladly switch stores if it means contactless shopping, he added.

Visa is now imagining a world where customers can scan QR codes to add products to their shopping cart in-store and checkout without interacting with a sales person. It is testing the technology at its innovation centre in Dubai.

Amid a wider uptake, service providers said they are working to build the trust of consumers, which along with inclusion are top concerns for consumers and technology developers alike.

“Security by design is central to development of new payment technologies,” Mr Elgibali said.

More than 60 per cent of the UAE’s current working population, especially in manufacturing, trading, food and beverage and construction, sits outside the traditional banking system, according to Edenred data.

With the outbreak of Covid-19 "it is becoming critical for businesses to ensure financial inclusion," Anouar Bourakkadi Idrissi, chief executive at Edenred UAE, said.

Edenred launched a Mastercard-linked app in August to facilitate financial inclusion.

“Now even unbanked employees can become cardholders," he said.

The company serves more than two million employees with its payroll app.

In June, Dubai-based ride-hailing company Careem teamed up with Visa to offer its drivers real-time access to their daily trip earnings.

The company has experienced an uptick in digital transactions during the pandemic.

Currently 90 per cent of its UAE customers are using cashless option Careem Pay against the 75 per cent before the pandemic, said Hassan Mahbub, head of strategy at Careem Pay.

“Covid struck and we saw, like other e-commerce platforms, a shift to non-cash ... on the payments front, it gives us a very strong footprint and baseline,” he said.

The Careem Pay wallet is the most downloaded wallet in the region and one in three rides are paid for through it.

To facilitate the digital transactions, banks are also sprucing up their infrastructure.

As banks increase their digital capabilities in the evolving environment they need to ensure seamless functionality across platforms, said Colin Dallas, head of retail banking at the National Bank of Fujairah.

It is critical to have effective measures in place to protect passwords, biometrics, linking mobile devices and customer’s online account, he added.

To enhance its mobile banking capabilities, the National Bank of Fujairah enrolled in ‘Klip’ - the nationwide multi-bank initiative, launched by Emirates Digital Wallet, that provides instant and person-to-person payments in the UAE through a mobile app.

“Transactions needs to be a quick and simple process with a maximum of one tap," Mr Dallas said. A bank "needs to ensure that all merchants will accept these payment methods”.

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Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026

1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years

If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.

2. E-invoicing in the UAE

Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption. 

3. More tax audits

Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks. 

4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime

Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.

5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit

There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.

6. Further transfer pricing enforcement

Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes. 

7. Limited time periods for audits

Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion. 

8. Pillar 2 implementation 

Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.

9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services

Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations. 

10. Substance and CbC reporting focus

Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity. 

Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer

The specs

Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8

Power: 611bhp

Torque: 620Nm

Transmission: seven-speed automatic

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The specs: 2018 Maserati Levante S

Price, base / as tested: Dh409,000 / Dh467,000

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Transmission: Eight-speed automatic

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Fuel economy, combined: 10.9L / 100km

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  • 70 per cent of cancer deaths occur in low and middle-income countries 
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  • At least one third of common cancers are preventable 
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9.25pm Handicap Dh175,000 (D) 2,000m

 

The National selections:

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7.05pm Rayig

7.40pm Torno Subito

8.15pm Talento Puma

8.50pm Etisalat

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The Bloomberg Billionaire Index in full

1 Jeff Bezos $140 billion
2 Bill Gates $98.3 billion
3 Bernard Arnault $83.1 billion
4 Warren Buffett $83 billion
5 Amancio Ortega $67.9 billion
6 Mark Zuckerberg $67.3 billion
7 Larry Page $56.8 billion
8 Larry Ellison $56.1 billion
9 Sergey Brin $55.2 billion
10 Carlos Slim $55.2 billion

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Name: Capt Shadia Khasif

Position: Head of the Criminal Registration Department at Hatta police

Family: Five sons and three daughters

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Breast cancer in men: the facts

1) Breast cancer is men is rare but can develop rapidly. It usually occurs in those over the ages of 60, but can occasionally affect younger men.

2) Symptoms can include a lump, discharge, swollen glands or a rash. 

3) People with a history of cancer in the family can be more susceptible. 

4) Treatments include surgery and chemotherapy but early diagnosis is the key. 

5) Anyone concerned is urged to contact their doctor

 

The specs: 2018 BMW R nineT Scrambler

Price, base / as tested Dh57,000

Engine 1,170cc air/oil-cooled flat twin four-stroke engine

Transmission Six-speed gearbox

Power 110hp) @ 7,750rpm

Torque 116Nm @ 6,000rpm

Fuel economy, combined 5.3L / 100km

 


 

Profile of MoneyFellows

Founder: Ahmed Wadi

Launched: 2016

Employees: 76

Financing stage: Series A ($4 million)

Investors: Partech, Sawari Ventures, 500 Startups, Dubai Angel Investors, Phoenician Fund

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