PCM Vol.3 Issue 12

The Three Hottest E-commerce Trends of 2017
2017 has seen a reinvigoration of the worldwide
ecommerce market, with the cross-border market
developing faster than domestic online retail. In fact,
the compound annual growth rate predicted for crossborder
ecommerce for 2017 to 2022 now stands at
17%, higher than the 12% growth rate for ecommerce
overall. Below are some of the most interesting trends
and shifts that are driving the market.
The quicker and more cost-effective option for
dealing with PSD2 is to outsource control of some
or all of your funds to a licensed payment, such as
Acapture - already compliant with PSD2. This way,
marketplaces will not need to make huge system
changes to continue operating as normal. For those
interested, here are some easy-to-read reports on
the implications of PSD2.
1. Online Marketplaces dominate the international scene
In 2017, online marketplaces have continued their rapid
growth worldwide. By 2020, 39% of the world’s entire
ecommerce market will be controlled by marketplaces,
while, already, 53% of cross-border sellers in the US
use online marketplaces. In China, Alibaba Group, the
Asian ecommerce giant whose portfolio of websites
includes the marketplaces Alibaba.com, Taobao and
AliExpress, became Asia’s most valuable company
and by August its market cap had reached USD442
billion. By subverting the traditional retailer consumer
relationship and acting as a link between the buyer
and the seller, online marketplaces have created a
level of security and usability for all involved parties
that would be very difficult to establish otherwise. For
emerging merchants looking to move cross-border,
an established marketplace offers all the tools
they need.
2. Consumer technologies driving growth of
eCommerce
While consumer technology is making the buyer
more accessible to the merchant, it is also
making the buyer more demanding, with a greater
expectation for personalized shopping experiences
and flawless logistics.
To deliver such services, the big brands are utilizing
the most popular technology trends, of which these
five are the most prominent: data science, AI and
machine learning, virtual reality, blockchain and the
Internet of Things (IoT).
In 2018, marketplace operators
will be heavily affected by the
revised Payment Services
Directive (PSD2), which
obliges any operator that, at
any stage in a transaction,
is handling another party’s
money to be licensed as a
payment institution, with
all that it entails from a
financial, regulatory and
operational angle.