Introducing new alternative payment methods in Pakistan
June 25, 2024
As gaming cements its place in daily routines across all regions and continents, game developers need to stay on top of the latest payment trends—especially in high-growth areas like Pakistan in Southeast Asia.
With a projected annual growth rate of 8.5% from 2024 to 2029, South Asia’s gaming market is booming. In particular, emerging South Asian regions like Pakistan should not be ignored by developers seeking to tap into passionate and exponentially growing video game audiences.
Capitalizing on the latest prominent trends in Southeast Asia, Xsolla Pay Station now offers new payment methods JazzCash and Easypaisa Wallet to support the growing gaming appetite in Pakistan. Pakistan’s gaming market at a glance The staggering gaming growth in Pakistan follows recent technological developments that have improved gaming experiences worldwide, such as more accessible cloud gaming and the rising popularity of mobile games and esports.
CLOUD GAMING ON THE RISE. As one of the leading global smartphone markets, cloud gaming is an exciting development for South Asia. Gaming on the cloud removes barriers to entry, such as expensive hardware and cumbersome storage requirements, allowing even smartphones with low specs to play new-generation games.
MOBILE GAMING DOMINANCE. Mobile gaming adapts well to various gamers, especially those with on-the-go lifestyles and a preference for brief, easily digestible gaming sessions. Mobile games, in particular, have experienced massive growth in Pakistan, with the market reaching a value of $270 million in 2022. Current predictions expect that value to boost to $450 million by 2025.
GROWTH OF ESPORTS. Finally, as the global wave of esports popularity grows, Pakistan’s esports industry is showing promise as a significant market. By 2025, experts project Pakistan's esports market to reach $20 million —double the estimated 10 million USD value in 2022. The recent rise of gaming in Pakistan Pakistan’s gaming market growth stems from a population showing increasing interest in gaming and the digital space. Recent studies suggest up to 62% of gamers in Pakistan play video games, and over 1,000 game development companies operate in Pakistan.
Along with gaming, the popularity of digital wallets and online payments has skyrocketed in Pakistan since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Pakistan currently ranks as the 46th largest eCommerce market globally, and its mobile POS payments market transaction value is expected to grow to $1.67 billion by 2027.
Source: Statista, EcommerceDB Deep dive: emerging trends and challenges for game devs in Pakistan While the current outlook is overwhelmingly positive for developers in Pakistan, the market does pose unique challenges to those hoping to make the biggest splash with their games.
The esports scene in Pakistan is still growing compared to the much more active regions of Nepal, Indonesia, and Thailand. That said, regional esports events such as Takedown have had notable success drawing top players and game casters to Pakistan and garnering significant audiences, indicating the market's great potential.
Although Pakistan's gaming and animation industries are thriving, there has been a noticeable absence of new, local IP in Pakistan’s entertainment, presenting an opportunity for fresh, culturally relevant content to take the market by storm. Additionally, South Asian representation in gaming has historically been lacking, but new indie titles like Thirsty Suitors that feature South Asian protagonists are making significant progress in reversing that trend.
The most exciting prospect for game devs looking to expand to Pakistan might be the trend of increasingly normalized digital payments. In 2022, the total value of digital payment transactions swelled to $8.3 billion, and analysts expect it to grow at a rate of 16.8% per year up to 2027. Xsolla Payments With an extensive track record of helping game developers navigate the complexities of local payment methods around the world, Xsolla regularly incorporates new emerging payment methods to help developers access new worldwide audiences. For the Pakistan gaming market, Xsolla is launching two new alternative payment methods to meet the nation’s growing appetite for gaming.
With a projected annual growth rate of 8.5% from 2024 to 2029, South Asia’s gaming market is booming. In particular, emerging South Asian regions like Pakistan should not be ignored by developers seeking to tap into passionate and exponentially growing video game audiences.
Capitalizing on the latest prominent trends in Southeast Asia, Xsolla Pay Station now offers new payment methods JazzCash and Easypaisa Wallet to support the growing gaming appetite in Pakistan. Pakistan’s gaming market at a glance The staggering gaming growth in Pakistan follows recent technological developments that have improved gaming experiences worldwide, such as more accessible cloud gaming and the rising popularity of mobile games and esports.
CLOUD GAMING ON THE RISE. As one of the leading global smartphone markets, cloud gaming is an exciting development for South Asia. Gaming on the cloud removes barriers to entry, such as expensive hardware and cumbersome storage requirements, allowing even smartphones with low specs to play new-generation games.
MOBILE GAMING DOMINANCE. Mobile gaming adapts well to various gamers, especially those with on-the-go lifestyles and a preference for brief, easily digestible gaming sessions. Mobile games, in particular, have experienced massive growth in Pakistan, with the market reaching a value of $270 million in 2022. Current predictions expect that value to boost to $450 million by 2025.
GROWTH OF ESPORTS. Finally, as the global wave of esports popularity grows, Pakistan’s esports industry is showing promise as a significant market. By 2025, experts project Pakistan's esports market to reach $20 million —double the estimated 10 million USD value in 2022. The recent rise of gaming in Pakistan Pakistan’s gaming market growth stems from a population showing increasing interest in gaming and the digital space. Recent studies suggest up to 62% of gamers in Pakistan play video games, and over 1,000 game development companies operate in Pakistan.
Along with gaming, the popularity of digital wallets and online payments has skyrocketed in Pakistan since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Pakistan currently ranks as the 46th largest eCommerce market globally, and its mobile POS payments market transaction value is expected to grow to $1.67 billion by 2027.
Source: Statista, EcommerceDB Deep dive: emerging trends and challenges for game devs in Pakistan While the current outlook is overwhelmingly positive for developers in Pakistan, the market does pose unique challenges to those hoping to make the biggest splash with their games.
The esports scene in Pakistan is still growing compared to the much more active regions of Nepal, Indonesia, and Thailand. That said, regional esports events such as Takedown have had notable success drawing top players and game casters to Pakistan and garnering significant audiences, indicating the market's great potential.
Although Pakistan's gaming and animation industries are thriving, there has been a noticeable absence of new, local IP in Pakistan’s entertainment, presenting an opportunity for fresh, culturally relevant content to take the market by storm. Additionally, South Asian representation in gaming has historically been lacking, but new indie titles like Thirsty Suitors that feature South Asian protagonists are making significant progress in reversing that trend.
The most exciting prospect for game devs looking to expand to Pakistan might be the trend of increasingly normalized digital payments. In 2022, the total value of digital payment transactions swelled to $8.3 billion, and analysts expect it to grow at a rate of 16.8% per year up to 2027. Xsolla Payments With an extensive track record of helping game developers navigate the complexities of local payment methods around the world, Xsolla regularly incorporates new emerging payment methods to help developers access new worldwide audiences. For the Pakistan gaming market, Xsolla is launching two new alternative payment methods to meet the nation’s growing appetite for gaming.
- JazzCash. Mastercard partner JazzCash is revolutionizing the digital payment landscape in Pakistan. Of the impressive 73.7 million JazzCash subscribers, 29% are women.
- Easypaisa. Serving 7.4 million unique customers, Easypaisa is the third-largest mobile money deployment account in the world.
- Fully customizable checkout UI to match your brand and your game.
- Adaptive design compatible across multiple platforms such as mobile, tablet, and PC.
- Up-to-date analytics on the trends and data you care about the most, readily available in your Publisher Account.
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