More Filipinos are going cashless, according to Visa’s Consumer Payment Attitudes Study.
The study said the proportion of cash users declined to 87 percent from 96 percent in 2022.
“Driven by the younger (Gen Z and Gen Y) and more affluent segments, Filipino consumers are increasingly embracing cashless transactions, going without cash for an average of 10 days. Specifically, card payments usage was at 70 percent (including swipe/insert, online and tap-to-pay/contactless payments) in 2023, while mobile wallets usage stood at 87 percent, on par with cash transactions,” Visa said.
The annual study covers payment behaviors when it comes to digital payments, digital banking and the future of commerce, tapping 1,000 Filipino consumers aged 18 to 65 years old, spread across different cities/regions and income brackets, with the minimum monthly income being P12,000.
The study, its 10th, was conducted in October to November 2023.
The study also noted that 43 percent of Filipinos who were surveyed now carry less cash in their wallets, mainly due to the growing consumer habit of using cashless and contactless payments, alongside the increasing acceptance of cashless payments among stores and merchants.
Supermarkets (88 percent), food and dining (86 percent) and bill payments (82 percent) are the leading merchant categories that consumers observed to have opened up acceptance of cashless payment methods compared to a year ago.
“Filipinos are becoming more comfortable with cashless payments, and we are confident that they will continue to embrace new innovations in the digital payment landscape,” according to Jeff Navarro, Visa country manager for the Philippines.
“With growth attributed to increasing payment acceptance across merchants for cards, both dip and contactless, as well as mobile wallets, Visa remains committed to ensuring a seamless transition to a cash-lite society by providing secure and convenient digital payment solutions,” he added.
Navarro said contactless payments — including contactless cards, QR codes and mobile wallets — are driving the growth of cashless payments in the country.
According to the study, about nine in 10 Filipinos are aware of and interested in using contactless cards and QR codes when paying for their transactions.
“Specifically, 32 percent of Filipinos used contactless cards for their payments in 2023, mainly driven by the affluent population. Meanwhile, 55 percent used QR codes, with at least 50 percent adoption across age groups except for consumers aged 59-65 (31 percent),” Visa said.
Among mobile wallet users, paying through QR codes is the most preferred method for 38 percent of consumers, making mobile wallets the most preferred funding source for QR payments, Visa noted.
Scanning the QR code in-store is the preferred mode of payment by 78 percent of its users, it added.
When travelling overseas, the study showed that Filipinos prefer to use cards for cross-border payments, where 55 percent of consumers prefer debit and credit cards for the convenience, time saved and hassle-free user experience.
An emerging trend is the use of QR codes for cross-border payments, with 37 percent of Filipinos currently aware of and have tried using it. Meanwhile, 69 percent of those who have not tried it have expressed interest in using it in the future.
“With the shift to digital forms of payment, 52 percent of consumers are confident to go without the use of cash, and rely on cashless payment methods entirely for at least a week. Moreover, 1 in 3 consumers (37 percent) believe that the Philippines will be a cashless society by the year 2030 — if not sooner,” Visa said.