Early in the pandemic, Michigan's Astera Credit Union realized that if it could not support touchless transactions, its members were likely to go elsewhere.
Most consumers expect to be offered a variety of digital payment options in stores in a post-COVID-19 world, and small and midsize business believe that change will be permanent, a Visa study finds.
The pandemic has changed Americans’ tolerance for germ-laden cash transactions. Aaron Klein, the Economic Studies Policy Director at the Brookings Institution is worried about how the latest stride toward a cashless society is impacting lower-income communities.
Digital wallets arguably reached a tipping point this spring when contactless payments jumped 40% in response to concerns that cash and payment terminals were helping to spread the coronavirus, Vidya Peters of Marqeta writes.
Whether they take the form of a mobile wallet or a touch-free credit card, contactless payments are poised to take off as consumers — wary of using terminals and ATMs or handing cards back and forth — change their habits.
With Americans traveling less due to the pandemic, the card, issued by Synchrony, is tailoring rewards to everyday purchases, such as groceries. It also has a contactless feature that could appeal to shoppers fearful of touching terminals.
In announcing its plan to offer a deposit account and debit card in partnership with SoFi, the mobile phone maker suggested that the coronavirus pandemic will accelerate consumers’ adoption of contactless payments.
A former economist says high-ranking officials engaged in “legally risky” behavior to downplay consumer harm; online payments and contactless transactions jumped in the first quarter, and some think the new habits will stick.
