Online retailers should be gearing up for the addition of a further 1.3 billion consumers worldwide joining the ranks of online shoppers by 2027, says market research firm Juniper Research.

The company’s report says Asia Pacific will be a leading driver of growth with Bangladesh, Pakistan and India expected to add 600 million new users in the next five years. By then, Jupiter estimates there will be 4.4 billion unique shoppers online, compared with 3.1 billion today.

And the company projects Asia Pacific region will generate more than US$4.3 trillion worth of online and mobile retail spend by 2027.

To capitalise on this growing market, the research has recommended payment service providers develop open payment platforms to simplify online shopping.

Research author, Cara Malone, said open payment platforms are “key” to “maximising growth” in the region.

“They allow the swift implementation of country-specific payment preferences, such as domestic digital wallets, through integrated vendors and payment service providers.”

Merchants are advised to focus on increasing the average spend and transactions per user along with implementing AI-based sentiment analysis to identify consumer preferences.