Helping Customers Cash In On The Cashless Society

By Peter Galvin, Vice President of Strategy, Thales e-Security

eMarketer predicts 37.5 million Americans will use proximity mobile payments this year — a 61.8 percent increase over 2015 — and total value of mobile payment transactions in the U.S. alone will grow 210 percent in the same period.

Historically, only established businesses have benefited from innovations available through card acceptance networks. That means there is huge potential to penetrate the SMB market, taking card payments on the move in street markets, pop-up shops, restaurants, and food trucks, or when making home deliveries.

This technology could user in the much-discussed cashless society. Going cashless holds many benefits, including safety and convenience. Rather than riffling through a wallet full of cash, a mobile payment is quick and discreet as well as less likely to attract the attention of thieves. Once cash is lost or stolen, it’s gone for good, but card payment methods — including both physical cards and mobile wallets — can be cancelled or switched off quickly. Lending and borrowing money between users becomes as easy as a tap or a wave of a smartphone.