Contactless Payment and US Chip-and-PIN Adoption Drives Smart Card Growth in 2014

The United States’ migration to EMV-standard chip-and-PIN cards, and the growing demand for contactless technologies, defined a high-growth payment card market in 2014, according to the Smart Payment Association (SPA). Preliminary figures, released in advance of the SPA’s annual review of the card payment market, show over 1.5 billion smart payment cards where shipped globally last year, with some 40% featuring contactless ‘tap and go’ technology.

The United States, the only major market not to have previously adopted EMV-standard cards, accounted for 185 million card and module shipments as the country makes the transition to chip-and-PIN. This number was significantly higher than the 30 million cards shipped in 2013 – reflecting growing enthusiasm from the country’s regulators, banks and retailers to combat card fraud on a national scale.

In a clear example of federal support for EMV transition, President Obama signed an executive order in October 2014 to apply chip-and-PIN technology to newly-issued and existing government credit and debit cards, and to deploy EMV-supported payment terminals in federal agencies.

Contactless technology continued its rapid global growth. In 2014, four out of every ten smart payment cards featured the ‘tap and go’ technology, with SPA members shipping a total of over 600 million contactless payment cards in the year. This figure represents a year on year growth of 35%, with much of the increase driven by Europe and Asia, where contactless cards represented slightly more than 50% of total shipments in 2014. In the US, less than 10% of cards shipped in 2014 featured contactless technology – a figure in line with the maturity of the EMV market.

The data, collated by the SPA – whose seven members represent around 85% percent of the total available market – also highlighted the primacy of the Dynamic Data Authentication (DDA) technology. DDA provides chip-and-PIN cards with high levels of protection against modification of data and card cloning. 70% of cards shipped in 2014 featured this technology – up from 66% in 2013.

Sylvie Gibert, president of the Smart Payment Association, said, “These preliminary figures underline the crucial role EMV-standard cards and secure infrastructures in the global payments ecosystem – both now and in the future.

“In 2014 we saw banks and retailers respond to consumer demands for faster and more convenient and more secure ways to pay as contactless shipments grew to their highest levels. Crucially, the continued and growing adoption of EMV-standard technology in the United States not only adds a greater security dimension, but offers contactless possibilities – both on the card and through embedded secure elements within NFC-enabled mobile devices.”

Featured

  • AI Is Now the Leading Cybersecurity Concern for Security, IT Leaders

    Arctic Wolf recently published findings from its State of Cybersecurity: 2025 Trends Report, offering insights from a global survey of more than 1,200 senior IT and cybersecurity decision-makers across 15 countries. Conducted by Sapio Research, the report captures the realities, risks, and readiness strategies shaping the modern security landscape. Read Now

  • Analysis of AI Tools Shows 85 Percent Have Been Breached

    AI tools are becoming essential to modern work, but their fast, unmonitored adoption is creating a new kind of security risk. Recent surveys reveal a clear trend – employees are rapidly adopting consumer-facing AI tools without employer approval, IT oversight, or any clear security policies. According to Cybernews Business Digital Index, nearly 90% of analyzed AI tools have been exposed to data breaches, putting businesses at severe risk. Read Now

  • Software Vulnerabilities Surged 61 Percent in 2024, According to New Report

    Action1, a provider of autonomous endpoint management (AEM) solutions, today released its 2025 Software Vulnerability Ratings Report, revealing a 61% year-over-year surge in discovered software vulnerabilities and a 96% spike in exploited vulnerabilities throughout 2024, amid an increasingly aggressive threat landscape. Read Now

  • Motorola Solutions Named Official Safety Technology Supplier of the Ryder Cup through 2027

    Motorola Solutions has today been named the Official Safety Technology Supplier of the 2025 and 2027 Ryder Cup, professional golf’s renowned biennial team competition between the United States and Europe. Read Now

  • Evolving Cybersecurity Strategies

    Organizations are increasingly turning their attention to human-focused security approaches, as two out of three (68%) cybersecurity incidents involve people. Threat actors are shifting from targeting networks and systems to hacking humans via social engineering methods, living off human errors as their most prevalent attack vector. Whether manipulated or not, human cyber behavior is leveraged to gain backdoor access into systems. This mainly results from a lack of employee training and awareness about evolving attack techniques employed by malign actors. Read Now

New Products

  • Connect ONE’s powerful cloud-hosted management platform provides the means to tailor lockdowns and emergency mass notifications throughout a facility – while simultaneously alerting occupants to hazards or next steps, like evacuation.

    Connect ONE®

    Connect ONE’s powerful cloud-hosted management platform provides the means to tailor lockdowns and emergency mass notifications throughout a facility – while simultaneously alerting occupants to hazards or next steps, like evacuation.

  • 4K Video Decoder

    3xLOGIC’s VH-DECODER-4K is perfect for use in organizations of all sizes in diverse vertical sectors such as retail, leisure and hospitality, education and commercial premises.

  • Compact IP Video Intercom

    Viking’s X-205 Series of intercoms provide HD IP video and two-way voice communication - all wrapped up in an attractive compact chassis.