Ingenico Group recently acquired the Systems of Secure Transactions (SST) business unit from its long-time partner and distributor in the Ukraine Bancomzvjazok JSC (BKC). SST will reportedly be integrated into Ingenico Group’s Banks & Acquirers business unit.
“We are delighted to welcome the SST team as part of Ingenico Group,” said Luciano Cavazzana, SVP of Ingenico’s Banks & Acquirers business unit. “Their knowledge of the local market will be key to unlock the Group’s growth in Ukraine, and their expertise in software development will be a valuable asset for the Banks and Acquirers business unit.”
Ingenico Group looks to leverage SST’s knowledge of the local market and relationships with Ukrainian banks, as well as the unit’s position as a software development service provider to Ingenico in Eastern Europe, as a means to build out its presence in the region.
This will become increasingly important as it relates to the payment terminals market.
Ingenico Group noted in its acquisition announcement that the Ukrainian payment terminals market is expected to grow significantly in the coming years, noting that the government has taken initiatives to promote digital transactions and likewise slowly decrease the use of cash in the economy.
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There already exist over 200,000 payment terminals in the Ukraine according to Ingenico Group.
Even as the Ukraine and elsewhere and Eastern Europe are seeing a growth in digital payment options along with the rest of the world, cash is still massively popular among shoppers in Eastern Europe.
Eastern European consumers spent more than $1 trillion in cash in 2015. What’s more, the region has a higher cash share than its Western European neighbors and even spends more physical currency per capita than the United States.
The amount of cash spent each year in Europe is expected to grow from $1.3 trillion in 2015 to $1.6 trillion in 2020.
