More than 70 percent of Central and Eastern European consumers (CEE) have indicated mobile phone as the preferred alternative payment method, according to a new Mastercard study on the use of digital services among the population. The survey, conducted in 13 CEE countries, including Romania, Austria, Croatia, Poland or Hungary, reveals that the use of the smartphone has reached more than 90 percent, leaving behind the use of tablet or laptop.

In the past three years, Romanians have consistently adopted a digital lifestyle using more and more tools and functionalities. At present, about 90 percent of the population uses a smartphone, up six percent compared to 2016.

Mobile payment and authentication methods are increasingly used by the Romanian population, with almost 80 percent of the respondents using this type of payment declaring that the process of acquiring and confirming mobile payment is the most good digital alternative. SMS code to authorize online transactions is the preferred and most commonly used method for authentication: by 51 percent of Romanian users.

At the same time, biometric authentication is on an upward trend in the preferences of Romanian consumers, 44 percent of those interviewed saying that if they could choose at the time of payment, they would opt for a biometric authentication method. 24 percent of Romanians already use biometric authentication in one form or another, compared to 2016, when the percentage was only five percent.