Whether we are paying for video games, or are looking into beds on finance deals, it’s clear that the digital revolution has granted us more ways to make payments than ever before.
Whilst a few people still hang on to the increasingly outdated methods of cash payments, more people are using E-wallets, app payment systems, and even cryptocurrencies as a way of buying goods.
A recent report stated that we can expect to see around 726 billion transactions through digital payments technology by 2020. And whilst this might sound like a staggering figure, it’s evident that cash is going to be around a little longer.
Despite cash being viewed as dirty, inefficient and prone to criminal activities such as money laundering, it is still the most common way for us to make day to day payments whilst out and about.
But as more businesses shift into the online domain, it’s expected that we will find more people adopting digital payment technologies. We have already seen how 50% of people don’t use cash, and this is a trend that’s only going to grow as technologies improve.
And there have been waves of E-wallet brands like Neteller and Paysafecard that are looking to follow in the wake of PayPal in giving people a convenient and safe way to make payments online.
We have already seen how nations like Sweden and Canada are leading the charge into becoming the first cashless countries. And whilst people in the UK can use 23 different banks to make Apple Pay payments, or even get a bed on finance through online payments at the Bedstar site, it seems that there is still a certain resistance to digital payments in some areas of society.
Perhaps our mistrust of these innovative payment systems is linked to ongoing news stories about online hacking. Certainly the vast majority of news stories about cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin seem to reflect perceptions about how volatile and risky these new technologies are.
Despite this, it seems that there’s no shortage in the sheer variety of payment options that are flooding our streets. Payment apps like Monzo have enjoyed a huge amount of popularity as they help people keep a track of their money and budget accordingly via their smartphones in a way that was unimaginable just a few years ago.
And with respectable high street brands like Starbucks and Subway being among the first to accept Bitcoin payments, it seems that it won’t just be beds on finance deals that feel the benefit of these exciting new digital payment technologies.
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