ao link
Credit Strategy homepage
Intelligence, insight and community
for credit professionals

Dear visitor,
You're reading 1 of your 3 free news articles this quarter

 

Register with us for free to get unlimited news, dedicated newsletters, and access to 5 exclusive Premium articles designed to help you stay in the know.

 

Join the UK's leading credit and lending community in less than 60 seconds.



Register now  or  Login

Debit cards overtake cash as UK’s most popular payment method

The convenience of contactless payments, online shopping and smartphones has led to debit cards overtaking cash for the first time as the most frequently used payment method in the UK.

Share on LinkedInShare on Twitter

According to research from UK Finance, new technology, payment innovation and changing consumer habits contributed to 13.2 billion card payments at the end of 2017 overtaking cash payments, which saw 13.1 billion transactions, a fall of 15 percent on the year before.

 

The popularity of contactless payments among UK consumers was a key driver of debit card growth, the supertrade body said. In total, across both debit and credit cards, the number of contactless payments increased by 97 percent during 2017 to 5.6 billion. Almost two thirds (63 percent) of people in the UK now use contactless payments, and no age group or region falls below 50 percent usage.

 

By the end of 2017, there were nearly 119 million contactless cards in circulation UK Finance said, adding that with customers and businesses increasingly choosing to use contactless cards and card acceptance devices, it is anticipated 36 percent of all payments across the UK will be contactless in 2027.

 

Despite this fall, cash is still the second most frequently used payment method, just behind debit cards, accounting for just over one-third (34 percent) of all payments in 2017. Around 2.2 million customers mainly used cash for their day-to-day shopping in 2017, although nine out of ten of them had a debit card they could use if they chose, and the majority used other payment methods to pay their regular bills.

 

Stephen Jones, chief executive, UK Finance said: “The choice of payment options available in the UK is allowing people to choose to pay the way that best suits them. But we’re far from becoming a cash-free society and despite the UK transforming to an economy where cash is less important than it once was, it will remain a payment method that continues to be valued and preferred by many.

 

“These trends are likely to shift further over the next decade. Developments such as Open Banking are expected to bring extensive changes to the payments landscape, something that will likely shape how we interact with our money in the coming years.”

Share on LinkedInShare on Twitter
Add New Comment
You must be logged in to comment. Login or Register to access enhanced features of the website.

Stay up-to-date with the latest articles from the Credit Strategy team

READ NEXT

Via Atal: Unlocking global growth

Via Atal: Unlocking global growth

The Budget - 2p National Insurance cut confirmed by the Chancellor 

The Budget - 2p National Insurance cut confirmed by the Chancellor 

2024 Credit 500 unveiled

2024 Credit 500 unveiled

Credit Strategy

Member of

Get the latest industry news 

creditstrategy.co.uk – an online news and information service for the UK’s commercial and consumer credit industry. creditstrategy.co.uk is published by Shard Financial Media Limited, registered in England & Wales as 5481132, 1-2 Paris Garden, London, SE1 8ND. All rights reserved. Credit Strategy is committed to diversity in the workplace. @ Copyright Shard Media Group