The use of digital wallets has grown considerably during the coronavirus outbreak, with many consumers now preferring contactless payments and ‘hands-free’ transactions over conventional cash.
New research by payments platform Paysafe, operator of digital wallet service Skrill, has revealed that 43% of those questioned had reduced traditional cash transactions. Some 32% stated that they’re increasingly using digital wallets to cover bills, pay for goods and services and transfer money overseas.
Paysafe’s research included responses from 8,000 consumers across the UK, US, Canada, Germany, Austria, Bulgaria and Italy. Nearly half (48%) of those questioned stated that they won’t be going back to using conventional cash for payments in the future, with more looking at buying online in order to avoid handling notes and coins.
Digital wallets
Lorenzo Pellegrino, CEO of Skrill, comments: “COVID-19 continues to be a catalyst for change across the whole payments industry. Consumers seem to be switching to digital offerings, signalling a definite shift in consumer preference for truly frictionless payment methods. Even as cash-based money transfer options reopen, preferences towards digital options, induced by the pandemic, are unlikely to subside.”
He continued: “A digital remittances solution such as Skrill Money Transfer is far more cost effective than a traditional bank transfer and has become an essential resource for people across the globe during the COVID-19 crisis. As consumer confidence and awareness of the benefits of digital international remittances continues to grow this may well represent a permanent evolution for the remittances industry.”
Digital wallets are increasingly popular with many high-profile companies launching them including the likes of American Express, Apple, Microsoft and Samsung.
