Wednesday 31 August 2011

From ‘cashless’ to ‘less-cash’ society

Visa Europe has released its first Contactless Barometer to benchmark consumer take-up of new payment methods. The research, of 2,000 UK consumers, showed positive feedback about contactless technology and a hunger for wider availability in mainstream retail outlets. No great surprise there…

Mark Austin, head of contactless at Visa Europe, comments: “We are now taking the first steps on the road to becoming a ‘less-cash’ society. The Barometer offers a snapshot of changing attitudes towards payment technology and consumer experiences of using it on the high street. The two key takeaways for me are the need for retailers to keep pace with consumer demand and also for our industry to take steps to ensure consumers are reassured about the security measures present in all contactless cards.”

The key takeaway for me is that ‘cashless’ society has been replaced by the not so grandiose ‘less-cash’ society . A long overdue recognition by the contactless brigade that, however much they might want it, cash ain’t going away any time soon.

Further info on the Visa Europe research here.

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