Cash shunned by consumers and firms as payments go mobile
MOBILE transaction volumes will come close to the 30bn mark in 2014, according to a report out today from RBS and Capgemini, as consumers and firms increasingly move away from cash and onto electronic channels.
Non-cash payments are expected to top 333bn transactions globally this year, a rise of 8.5 per cent on the year.
And that growth will continue next year, led by an expected 58.5 per cent rise in mobile payments which the World Payments Report estimates will hit 28.9bn in 2014.
Although the UK will see a rise of 7.6 per cent in non-cash transfers, it is Central Europe, the Middle East and Africa leading the way at more than 20 per cent growth.
“The unabated rise of non-cash payments is a sign of the interconnected lives we live today,” said Kevin Brown from RBS.
“In the developing markets, mobile payments are giving more people access to financial transactions, while customer-centric innovation has helped prepaid cards and virtual currency gain traction in the more developed markets.”