The cashless future

The way in which we make payments has completely transformed, particularly over the past decade with the introduction of cashless payment systems. The cash-free payment method has been adopted in several countries across the globe, with the UK alone having 47% of the public using cashless payments rather than cash on a day-to-day basis (Payments Next). Although individual countries have their own reasons for adopting the RFID cashless system, there is the mutual purpose of catering to customers needs, due to the fast-paced era we live in, tap-and-go payments provide great convenience for everyone.

The top 5 most cashless countries

When financial institutes are calculating the most cashless countries, they use 6 metrics to calculate the score for each country. These metrics include the amount of credit and debit cards per person, how many cards issued with contactless functionality, the growth of cashless payments over 5 years, the transactions made with non-cash methods and the amount of people aware what mobile payment options available to them. 

Using these metrics, these countries came on top for going cashless: 

1. Canada - With a score of 6.48/10, Canada leads the way as each person has 2 or more credit cards.

2. Sweden - The most cashless country in Europe, Sweden has a score of 6.47/10, and is actually uses more cashless payment methods than anywhere else in the world.

3. UK - United Kingdom's love for quick contactless payments has taken the country to the 3rd spot, with a score of 6.42/10.

4. France - With 39% of cards in France having contactless technology, they have a score of 6.25/10.

5. USA - With almost 3 credit cards per person in the states, the country is on a cashless rise with a score of 5.87/10.

The future of cashless payments

As the cost of maintaining cash payments becomes less justifiable for many countries, we accelerate the transition towards cashless payment methods. We are moving from ‘cash only’ to ‘card only’, with the introduction of kiosks in supermarkets across the globe, which also contributes to the increase of cashless transactions. 

In Sweden, there are actually some banks which don’t handle cash at all, and many stores display the signs saying ‘no cash accepted’. With barely 1% of the payments made by cash, Sweden is on the way to become the world's first completely cashless society (BBC News). The key factor to the future of cashless payments is the ability to use them across a variety of devices with the use of RFID technology. Now people have the option to pay via credit/debit cards, smartphones and wearables such as RFID wristbands, eliminating the need to carry cash. 

(Photo credit: BBC News)