Going cashless: Trends and analysis for financial services leaders

The pervasiveness of smartphones and internet connectivity are propelling cashless payments across the globe. As digital transactions replace cash, payment companies have become some of the most successful enterprises. To stay in step with the evolving trends in this space, our client a financial services major, sought to understand the future of cash and cashless transactions. The firm knew it would need a robust market assessment and trend analysis of reigning technologies to stay market-cognizant before a strategic venture.

Objectives and Scope

Our client, a leading financial services provider, wanted to determine the rate at which non-cash transactions would increase and potentially render cash obsolete. The objectives were to:

• Identify various emerging technologies that were enabling cashless transactions
• Determine the factors influencing the preference for cashless transactions
• Assess the role of the government in enabling cashless transactions
• Evaluate the role of fintech in this space

Solutions and Approach

Netscribes analyzed the technology penetration in enabling cashless transactions based on secondary research conducted in two phases.

• Phase I: We studied the factors affecting cash displacement and enabling cashless transactions. Based on the findings, we framed questions relevant to the research
• Phase II: With a focus on assessing the role of technology in enabling cashless transactions, we analyzed the following:
  • Overall growth in the payments industry
  • Technologies enabling the adoption of digital payments
  • Socioeconomic factors influencing the adoption of digital payments
  • Government role in the adoption of digital payment methods
  • Disruption by fintech and its corresponding impact on cashless transactions

Results Delivered

Netscribes provided the client with an in-depth analysis report detailing:

• The factors encouraging economies to adopt cashless transactions
• An assessment of each factor’s degree of influence on the adoption of different digital modes of payment
• Emerging technologies that could further help dispense cash
• An evaluation of the technologies adopted by organizations to make cash handling more efficient