Gearing up for a Multi-Trillion Dollar Year in Mobile Payments
Cash.Tech Newsletter #11: Digital payments set to see explosive growth in 2022 and Cash.Tech capitalizes
Over $156 trillion is expected to move across international borders by the end of 2022, with a significant chunk expected to come from consumer transactions for goods and services. In Europe alone, individual consumers are expected to account for 400 billion transactions primarily via mobile platforms.
The massive surge in demand for retail transactions creates an opportunity for cost-effective digital payment solutions, including those powered by cryptocurrencies. This week’s Cash.Tech Newsletter highlights the growing market demand for digital payment solutions and how Cash.Tech is set to grab a significant market share in 2022. As usual, we will bring you some development updates first.
Cash.Tech development update
The Cash.Tech team is still working on the Swap feature which will allow users to convert their holdings between different cryptocurrencies and tokens. Although the upcoming app release will not include this feature, the team hopes to ramp up development and ship the Swap feature within the shortest possible time.
Additionally, the development team will commence concept design for the long-awaited Merchant protocol. As explained in the latter part of this newsletter, the merchant protocol is part of Cash.Tech’s core infrastructure and represents part of our push to take on the market for cross-border payments. The team reiterates its commitment to providing our loyal community with prompt updates on development efforts.
Digital commerce and payments to soar in 2022
Digital payments span several use cases including transactions for online shopping, mobile commerce, and remittances. In the past, this market was largely dominated by banks. However, the dawn of fintech solutions and cryptocurrencies have severely disrupted the market while also creating greater demand from the end consumer.
According to data from Statista, the total transaction volume for the digital payment sector is projected to reach $7.8 trillion in 2022. The largest market segment will be Digital Commerce with $4.7 trillion in transaction volume during the period under consideration.
(Source: Statista)
The pandemic and the demand for contactless payments boosted the adoption of digital commerce. Consumers have become more comfortable with online shopping using their smartphones, and even from merchants located outside their country of residence. International shoppers are expected to spend $1.2 trillion in 2022, but are short of payment methods.
A recent survey found that the average eCommerce merchant offered between 6 and 7 payment methods in 2021, even though the average number of currencies used by international shoppers have increased to between 10 and 11 within the same period. This statistic highlights that businesses are serving customers from several countries and ought to provide greater convenience by adopting new systems.
Boosting digital payments with cryptocurrencies
By design, cryptocurrencies are suitable for cross-border use and have seen increased adoption recently. The past year has seen payment giants such as PayPal, Mastercard, and Visa offer to help merchants accept cryptocurrencies as payment from customers. As Mastercard alluded to in its announcement of the move, the company [and indeed the digital payment landscape] is preparing “right now for the future of crypto and payments.”
There are 220 million crypto users globally, but just an estimated 15,000 businesses support crypto payments. Merchants who choose to accept cryptocurrencies stand a chance to attract a growing class of investors holding these digital assets. According to a PYMNTS survey, 46 million consumers (or roughly 18% of crypto holders) are open to using cryptocurrencies for payments. More merchants are also open to accepting cryptocurrencies, creating demand for solutions that make the integration process seamless.
Cash.Tech is shaping up to fill this role through its upcoming Merchant Protocol. This offering will give both small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) the ability to easily accept cryptocurrencies as a payment method. The solution is designed to accommodate businesses even in rural areas (without access to traditional banking), allowing them to download the app and conduct business instantly.
Unlike existing payment options that work in a custodial fashion, the Merchant Protocol will be designed in line with our mission to provide users access to all the possibilities of crypto in a self-custodial manner. Hence, merchants and customers will always retain access to their private keys throughout the transaction cycle. The Merchant Protocol will drive adoption of the Cash.Tech wallet and $CATE tokens among millions of merchants and consumers.
Going into 2022, the Cash.Tech team remains highly optimistic about delivering key milestones on its development roadmap. Tapping into the growing demand for digital payments is a giant step in that direction and one we look forward to harnessing this year and beyond!
Cash.Tech wallet is already connected to the testnet and fully functional for Android and iOS devices. Make sure to download the wallet to get first-hand experience.
