Fri. Mar 29th, 2024
The Era Of Virtual Payment Has StartedThe Era Of Virtual Payment Has Started

More and more retailers and providers are accepting cashless payments. Nowadays, few people still have cash with them on a regular basis. Instead, they pay with debit or credit card, via Apple Pay or with digital wallets such as PayPal. Actually, one country is already claiming that it will completely end payment by cash soon.

Sweden goes cashless

A research report predicts that Sweden will be completely cashless by April 2023. Several reasons lie behind this calculation. For one, Swedes love technology and prefer to pay with apps and cards rather than coins and bills. As a result, only half of all Swedish banks issue cash at all. On the other hand, there is no obligation for banks or stores to accept cash. In many places, customers can only pay by card. However, many groups feel disadvantaged by the inconsistent and different regulations because those who do not have a credit card or do not use digital payment providers quickly encounter considerable problems in everyday life and while traveling. Voices have therefore been raised that a consistent means of payment and regulations are needed for this. Due to the current trend toward cashless payments, the research report predicts that it will no longer be profitable for merchants to issue coins or bills after March 24 in 2023.

Acceptance of digital payment methods is expanding

Across all countries, it is apparent that the popularity of digital payment methods is steadily increasing. The Visa Payment Monitor indicates that the number of mobile payers is climbing up as well. In Germany, for example, 5.9 million purchases were paid by EC card last year, two-thirds of which were also contactless. With the increasing use of mobile payment options, this method of payment is also no longer a special case for checkout staff: while 55 percent of mobile payers still had to explain the option of mobile payment to staff in 2019, only 29 percent had to do so in 2021. Contactless payment is possible with debit cards and credit cards that have a so-called NFC chip. In addition, contactless money can be transferred using a smartphone or smartwatch with services such as Apple Pay and Google Pay or with banking apps. The data for processing the payment is exchanged in encrypted form with the terminal at the checkout when customers hold their card or smartphone or smartwatch close to the device. For small amounts, it is not even necessary to enter the PIN. Retailers have been promoting this type of payment in recent years for hygienic reasons. Furthermore, the usability of digital payment providers such as PayPal is expanding more and more. PayPal, Klarna and co are becoming more and more established and are now accepted by almost every online retailer. Digital e-wallets such as PayPal are particularly characterized by the fast payment process. Anyone who sets up an account with PayPal can use it to pay quickly. This makes the provider very desirable for online transactions, for example while online shopping, for paying vacations or even for payments in online casinos. It is especially advantageous that not only with deposits but also withdrawals can be made via PayPal, so no second payment service has to be set up. Those who are still looking for a suitable online casino can use various comparison portals. These help to get an overview of online providers and find the gaming halls that are the most reputable and also offer good bonus offers and a wide game selection, for example casino sites in Qatar.

Paying with PayPal in the store

Meanwhile, PayPal is not only accepted in mostly all online transactions but can also be used to pay in the local store with the PayPal QR code. To use this function, the PayPal app must first be downloaded and opened. Then one selects the function “Scan/Pay” and holds the smartphone camera on the QR code or shows it to the seller to scan. Paying by QR code is easy, fast and completely contactless. To find out which stores accept the PayPal scanner as a payment method, you can use the QR code finder in the app to find stores where you can pay nearby with the PayPal app. In the meantime, we will see how long cash will still be used before completely shifting to digital and contactless payment methods.

By admin