Generation Z: Leading the way to the future of commerce

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The future of commerce lies with Gen Z. This all-digital generation of young adults is becoming critical in deciding where payments go.

Gen Zers are not only leading the charge toward smarter, hyper-personalized, flexible and seamless digital payments; they are also poised to become the fastest-growing consumer segment globally with extraordinary market-shaping power through their unique financial behaviors.

At Visa, we recently published a new report, “ Winning over the Gen Zers in social, gaming & payments ,” and the numbers are impressive, especially when it comes to their commerce and money behaviors. For example, Gen Zers are emerging as a powerful force in the mobile app economy: 75% say they regularly use apps for financial activities, 85% own and use a financial app or digital wallet¹, and 60% of Gen Zers globally use mobile devices to make digital purchases², using apps for online shopping far more than any other generation.

Gen Zers primarily manage their money online and want their real-world transactions how to get south korea whatsapp number to work as easily as their digital interactions. This is especially important to understand as this generation doesn’t differentiate between channels. Whether it’s on Instagram, TikTok, or in-store, they expect a seamless experience across any platform and device.

To make these online spaces secure and frictionless, Visa is committed to developing solutions like Click to Pay, which provides a seamless digital payment experience. Instead of having to manually enter card details every time they pay, cardholders enroll in Click to Pay once and then check out with participating merchants simply by using their email address or phone number. Click to Pay together with the Visa Payment Passkey Service can be a powerful duo. Visa Payment Passkey is a next-generation authentication solution that confirms digital identity using biometrics (face, fingerprint) to enable payments. It is based on the FIDO standard and is designed to make online payments more secure by eliminating passcodes and reducing fraud. We are working with our partners in the region to implement these services in the near future.

For Gen Z, payments must also be available in the virtual spaces where they usually meet, interact and play. And this brings me to video games, which currently play a central role in the lives of these young people. Gen Z has grown up playing video games from an early age, so many feel comfortable and emotionally attached to the world of gaming. In fact, 80% of Latin Americans belonging to Gen Z identify themselves as gamers³ and 70% play to socialize with friends in digital worlds⁴.

But video games are not just a hobby for them, they are also a social currency. And I understand this very well. My son Valentino is in the early stages of this generation and is a gamer by nature. Not only does he already pay for everything with his phone (it's the only thing he carries with him all the time), but he also spends too many hours connected to the FIFA football video game, which has transformed him into a businessman who buys and sells players with friends.

An inherent value of video games, therefore, is that they often provide these young people with their first exposure to digital transactions, and indeed to the entire financial system, laying the groundwork for their understanding and influence on the future of online commerce.

Gamers are comfortable with coins, tokens, and other forms of virtual payment in games, and with the cost associated with their favorite games. They spend time earning and spending money in-game, and even use it to trade with others in real life, such as promising to pay a friend a certain amount of Robux, Roblox’s currency, for their drink.

In many of these cases, young gamers are able to participate in the digital payments ecosystem without ever interacting with real-world financial institutions or merchants. As noted in our new report⁵, 57% of Gen Z gamers say they have discovered new brands while playing a game, 53% are more likely to purchase a brand featured in a game, and 32% have purchased virtual or digital goods in a digital gaming world⁶.

As Gen Z emerges from adolescence into financial maturity, adapting to their dynamics is not only necessary but a strategic imperative for future success. With Latin America and the Caribbean becoming the fastest-growing region in gaming7 and Gen Z now the largest age cohort in the world⁸, the opportunities in this space are enormous. At Visa, with our commerce expertise and innovative solutions, we can help create the best product propositions and continue to unlock the power of this segment for our clients and partners in the region, helping them achieve the right exposure and business growth.