Checkout.com said consumers across the Middle East and North Africa increasingly expect digital payments to become frictionless and embedded into online shopping experiences, while continuing to prioritize security and trust.
The payments company’s report, “MENA Digital Commerce 2026: The New Era of AI in Payments,” found that 97% of consumers value “invisible” payments, where transactions occur without manual credential entry or page redirections.
The study said the shift comes as ecommerce adoption accelerates across the region, with 45% of consumers shopping online at least weekly and 63% expecting to increase online shopping frequency over the next year.
“In this new era of ecommerce in MENA, trust isn’t just a preference, it’s the ultimate currency,” Remo Giovanni Abbondandolo, general manager for MENA at Checkout.com, said in a statement.
The report found that 62% of consumers consider a safe and secure payment process the most important factor in online shopping, outweighing speedy delivery.
Security concerns continue to affect purchasing behaviour, with 28% of consumers abandoning online shopping carts because of security worries, according to the report.
Checkout.com said trust breakdowns can immediately affect merchant loyalty, with 62% of consumers abandoning purchases after a false payment decline and 35% switching directly to competitors.
Digital wallets and remittances expand across region
The report said digital wallets have become integrated into daily financial activity across MENA, with 64% of consumers using them monthly for purchases, budgeting and financial management, while 74% use them for money transfers.
Checkout.com said its total processing volume in MENA increased 62% year-on-year, reflecting growing digital payment adoption across the region.
The company also reported a 169% year-on-year increase in remittance volumes between 2024 and 2025, underscoring accelerating demand for digital-first money transfer services.
The report identified food delivery as the most frequent category for online purchases, cited by 59% of respondents, followed by clothing and accessories at 54% and travel at 40%.
Checkout.com said the findings point to a broader shift in consumer behaviour as digital channels increasingly become part of recurring and high-value spending activity rather than limited convenience purchases.
The report also noted growing social commerce activity, with 25% of consumers shopping through social media platforms.
AI shopping agents face privacy concerns
Checkout.com said consumers in the region are increasingly open to artificial intelligence-powered shopping assistants, though adoption remains closely tied to trust and privacy concerns.
According to the report, 50% of consumers are willing to allow AI agents to shop on their behalf, while 55% cited privacy as the primary obstacle to adoption.
The study found that consumers were most willing to delegate price comparisons, product reviews and shopping-list creation to AI systems, while showing increasing openness to using AI for groceries, travel bookings and subscription management.
The report said men and higher-income consumers demonstrated greater comfort with AI shopping assistants than women and lower-income groups, suggesting early adoption may initially be concentrated among digitally confident and wealthier users.
“What we are seeing in MENA is a clear redefinition of what a good payment experience looks like,” Abbondandolo said. “Consumers are telling us they want payments to disappear into the background, but only if they can trust what is happening behind the scenes.”
