News

Electronic payments surpass cash, checks

December 29, 2003

WASHINGTON, DC - For the first time, electronic payments have surpassed cash and checks as consumers' preferred payment method for in-store purchases, according to a nationwide consumer-payment preferences study conducted by the American Bankers Associationand Dove Consulting.

According to the "2003/2004 Study of Consumer Payment Preferences," cash and checks now account for 47 percent of consumers' in-store purchases, compared with 57 percent in 1999 and 51 percent in 2001.

This evolution of payment behavior is largely driven by debit's increasing popularity. Four years ago, debit represented only 21 percent of in-store transactions; today consumers say that nearly one out of three (31 percent) of their in-store purchases are made with a debit card.

Debit's growth has come at the expense of both cash and checks. Although cash remains the single most frequently used payment method in stores, its share of the transaction mix has fallen from 39 percent in 1999 to 32 percent in 2003. Checks also play a diminishing role at the point-of-sale, accounting for just 15 percent of purchases.

Consumer use of credit cards for in-store purchases has remained relatively constant at 21 percent. Prepaid cards account for 2 percent of purchases.

The research was sponsored by ACI Worldwide, eFunds Corporation and Pulse EFT Association.