There are few aspects of our lives which now involve a smartphone. Payment, in particular, is one which has been revolutionised, thanks to the introduction of e-wallets.
Instead of taking out a credit card, customers simply swipe their phone over an NFC reader to make payment. The tech can also be used to withdraw cash from ATMs and make payments to other people.
As mobile internet connections improve, more industries adopt the tech and provide incentives for customers to use it. People are beginning to realise the advantages over traditional payments, like security, speed and convenience, particularly Gen Z.
It’s no surprise that the market could generate $500 million this year alone. By 2023, around 1.31 billion transactions could be processed worldwide.
Many Online Industries use e-wallets
Many industries like are now accepting e-wallet payment methods, because it offers their customers more choice with regards to payment. There are actually many different types of e-wallet in use around the world.
Here is a quick summary of the most popular.
Multi-Purpose Payments. They work in a similar way to physical wallets, with the ability to store multiple payment forms, including credit and store cards, debit and gift cards, among others. All payment methods are stored in one place.
Biometric Payments. Fraud and ID theft is becoming an increasing problem in the information age. Biometric payment is one attempt to try and tackle such issues. It can include fingerprint scanning, facial recognition, iris recognition, heartbeat analysis and vein mapping. It’s a reliable, secure, efficient and accurate form of payment.
Mobile POS (mPOS). Traditionally, merchants were tied down to taking payments within physical premises. Thanks to mobile POS, this is no longer the case, as payment can be taken virtually anywhere using an mPOS device. Considering the CAGR is expected to be 19% between now and 2026, it’s clearly a popular payment method for the future.
Smart Speaker Payments. Although smart speakers’ general usage continues to grow, many are still reluctant to use them to make direct payments or send money. This is down to security concerns, which 74% of people admit. Nevertheless, 28% still use smart speakers for this purpose.
AI & Machine Learning Payments. Banks are making use of machine learning and AI to make their security better. By continuously showing transactions to their software, this is allowing them to detect dodgy transactions in real-time. Suppose you receive texts from your bank asking you to confirm whether a payment was genuine or fraudulent. In that case, this is something that is produced from machine learning.
Contactless Payments. With this type of payment, a customer downloads an app to their phone and adds their card details to it. When the device is waved over a reader, a payment is then made. Because of its speed, it’s becoming more popular as a method of payment. In fact, it’s expected as many as 37% of all payments by 2027 will be contactless.
Mobile Wallets. Like an actual wallet, they allow customers to store, send and receive money, gain rewards and pay their bills. Considering the number of mobile wallet transactions are expected to grow by 274.4 billion, it’s no surprise that more and more big companies are adopting this tech.
Why are we seeing an increase in e-wallet payment methods in the gaming industry?
The online gaming industry is constantly growing with more gaming providers entering the market. With many now operating solely online, it means players also have to pay via digital transactions, this has meant gaming sites have aimed to offer more variety of digital payment options to their players such as e-wallets.
E-wallet payment options are also highly convenient because all payments are stored in one place meaning players can easily quickly pay for their game and get back to playing rather than searching for a traditional bank card.
The gambling industry in particular is one where we have seen several casino providers now accept different e-wallets for payment methods. Rather than variety, one of the main reasons gambling providers are using this option is for security. E-wallet payment methods are known as secure forms of payment. For example, all transactions have to be confirmed using things like selfies or touch ID to help protect players personal information and data and also can help reduce the risk of hacking.
The rise of Cryptocurrency payments
Just like the rise of e-wallets, there have also been a rise in the number of cryptocurrency transactions over the last couple of years. This is mainly due to more industries now accepting cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin as a legitimate payment method.
Many cryptocurrencies are believed to be trustworthy and secure as they are powered by a blockchain therefore no third party is involved in connecting the payment between the two participants. By using a blockchain, cryptocurrency payments can be discreet and not linked to a payee’s identity unlike a traditional payment method of a credit/debit card, transactions feed are also usually avoided. Due to the blockchain, cryptocurrency transactions can be made by a payee to anyone around the world without having to wait for permission from anyone such as a traditional bank.
Just like e-wallets, cryptocurrencies can also be accessed instantly as long as the participant is connected to the internet. With their decentralized nature, cryptocurrencies allow mobile users to make their payments in a fast and secure way making cryptocurrency payments accessible and convenient for many.
From Card Packed Wallets to Single Device. How Payment has been Revolutionised
There was a time when our only option to make payments was to take out our wallets. They would usually be packed with additional credit, debit and store cards, as well as cash.
Now, thanks to the invention of e-wallets, this is no longer necessary. Customers can store all their preferred forms of payment on their mobile device, then make payment using technologies such as near field communication.
But it’s not just our smartphones which have revolutionised the way we pay. Devices like smart speakers can also be used.
Retailers are no longer tied down to physical premises, thanks to the invention of mobile POS, allowing them to take payments virtually anywhere. Banks are also using new tech, like AI, to make payments even more secure for customers.
Various industries realise the benefits of offering new forms of payment, including the gaming sector.
Hitesh Malviya is the Founder of ItsBlockchain. He is one of the most early adopters of blockchain & cryptocurrency enthusiast in India. After being into space for a few years, he started IBC in 2016 to help other early adopters learn about the technology.
Before IBC, Hitesh has founded 4 companies in the cyber security & IT space.
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