South Africans move to contactless payments

The world is becoming more digital by the day, and this is no different for South Africans who are also moving away from paying for services and products in a traditional manner.

Data by First National Bank (FNB) shows there has been a decrease in cash payments over the past three years.

Speaking at the bank’s payment media update was the CEO for Core Banking and Merchant Services Daniel Kaan, who said digital payment solutions increased from R16,8 billion to R77 billion in this period.

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Cashless payments

FNB has been able to increase cashless payments in different ways including allowing businesses to turn their mobile phone or point-of-sale solutions into a convenient payment solution and being able to make contactless payments at e-tolls, amongst other solutions.

Kaan said a significant number of transactions are digital, with contactless payments driving this growth. “In the Personal Segment, which is predominantly cash-reliant, almost 90% of transactions are now digital.”

Efforts being made

He acknowledged that the banking sector is making efforts to ensure that digital payments are more convenient and reducing the reliance on cash in the economy.

One of the efforts is the creation of Payshap, which he said has proved to be an important payment mechanism to accelerate success in cash-to-digital migration. 

The bank has seen R74 billion in payments using a digital wallet, R43 billion in Virtual Card spend since the launch, R418 million in Bill Payments since its launch, Card Instant Payments up 83% year-on-year and R1 billion in payments.

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How customers pay

Ashley Saffy, head of spend and customer value management and Wandile Mnguni, product head at the bank noted that cash has reached a turning point in the country, but many people continue to use and depend on it.

Cash-in-circulation tracked nominal gross domestic product and fell for the first time in 2024.

“This trend is expected to continue as customers become more digitised. Increasing digital transactions brings payment activity that takes place outside the banking environment into the formal economy.”

What customers pay for

FNB’s data shows that 61% of those who earn less than R750 000 per annum still feel like having cash is important to their everyday life and they can’t go without it. While 64% still use cash for small purchases like buying refreshments and snacks, even if their preference is still card.

Half of their respondents said they still pay for services and products in cash due to no alternatives. This is for things like groceries, transport, home cleaning, salaries and wages.

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