This report reflects on the key retail payments issues which kept Celent analysts busy in 2012 and that Celent believes are set to shape the industry in 2013.

The new report, Top Trends in Retail Payments: A Year in Review, 2013 Edition, is the third edition of Celent’s annual payments trends review. This particular report focuses on trends in retail payments. For a complete overview of Celent’s top trends in payments, this report should be read in conjunction Top Trends in Corporate Payments: A Year in Review, 2013 Edition.

As always, this report presents the top 10 retail payments-related issues that Celent analysts dealt with in 2012 and expect to see develop further in 2013. They are not necessarily the most important issues in any given country globally, or even for any given institution. However, collectively, they do represent a reasonably accurate portrayal of important topics in the developed markets. Some of the trends have been covered in more detail in other reports published by Celent throughout the year, but others are discussed in writing here for the first time.

“Mobile and digital payments dominated the discussions in 2012, and will undoubtedly remain important in 2013,” says Zilvinas Bareisis, Senior Analyst with Celent’s Banking Group and author of the report. “Retail payments innovation continues to be driven by the profound changes in the way consumers buy goods and services, get and redeem offers, and interact with banks. And, of course, payments regulation remains an important theme. However, the payments industry could benefit from a change in regulatory focus: less on the ‘old issues’ such as interchange and more on the alternative payments.”

This 33-page report contains nine figures and two tables.