News

Study: Cash falling behind debit, credit volumes at the POS

June 12, 2012

A study from Javelin Strategy and Research found that plastic is beating out cash when it comes to retail point of sale volume.

Consumers do use cash at the POS, but these purchases tend to be relatively inexpensive items. For larger tickets, consumers generally to pay with a credit or debit card, said an article at CU Times.

"Cash may be the most commonly used payment option for POS retail transactions, but frequent usage does not necessarily translate to a higher sales volume," the Javelin study said.

Javelin reported that total retail sales volumes broke down to:

• 31 percent from debit cards
• 29 percent for credit cards
• 27 percent for cash

By 2017, the study predicted, cash will constitute just 23 percent of total sales volume.

Purely in terms of growth, CU Times reported, mobile ranks well ahead of other payment methods. But it has a long way to go to match their size. The total sales volume for mobile payment by 2017 is still forecast at less than one percent. 

For more on this topic, visit the trends/statistics research center.