Russian e-retail sales on the way up despite preference for cash payment

According to a report by PwC, the number of Russian households with internet access exceeded the number of those without in 2013, with an estimated growth in home internet up to 68% by 2017, reaching 38 billion households.

Findings indicate that the number of people using mobile internet is also increasing, with 41 % of respondents saying that they used their mobile phone for shopping in 2013. Currently, about 61 billion people in Russia, an estimated 43% of the population, have mobile internet, a number that is predicted to rise up to 100 billion by 2017.

However, Russian consumers often prefer to pay in cash with card payments accounting for only 15% of e-transactions in Russia. According to the WorldPay senior vice president of ecommerce strategy, Ieuan Owen, the local digital e-wallets or payment methods preferred are Yandex, QIWI and Webmoney, which now account for between a quarter and a third of all ecommerce consumer spending in Russia.