BFC Bulletins Monthly News Digest
Tags Artificial Intelligence Customer Experience Identification Payments
Over the last five years, mobile payments have grown, grown and grown some more. In 2017, wallet spending amounted to USD 1.35 trillion. In 2018, that figure rose to USD 4.3 trillion. By 2022, its expected to balloon to nearly USD 14 trillion. Despite this boom, there is still much room for innovation and improvement in the sector. Here are 5 of the top mobile wallet trends to key an eye on in the near future:
- Near-field communication (NFC) payments – NFC offers security and simplicity and is gaining in popularity the world over. In fact, research shows that contactless payment methods could increase 74% and that over 60% of merchants are expected to embrace the technology by the early 2020s.
- Biometrics – although around for decades, biometric technology has only recently become commonplace in consumer products, making payments faster, more convenient and more secure. According to industry data, there will be over 18 billion biometric transactions happening every year by 2021.
- Loyalty programs – customer retention and loyalty strategies are an integral part of a business’s success plan. With consumers clamoring for a digital wallet that integrates loyalty programs that can be used at multiple merchants, businesses are likely to start sharing news, promotions, announcements, product details and other valuable content and information.
- Improved artificial intelligence – artificial intelligence (AI) has rapidly improved to the point that it can now easily handle routine, everyday consumer interactions. AI will be essential in creating advanced fraud detection strategies and defending against cyberattacks, allowing for smoother consumer shopping experiences.
- Smart speaker payments – home assistants, also known as smart speakers, have exploded in popularity in recent years. Now, they allow routine tasks such as ACH payment processing or number verification to be executed automatically. Expect this trend to continue to gain in popularity.
