According to new data released by consulting firm Bain & Company, 55 percent of British internet users are aware of mobile payment options, but only 3 percent have actually used their mobile phones to pay for transportation or goods in real life. This data dovetails nicely with figures released by payment solution provider Sage Pay indicated that 85 percent of UK internet users still plan using credit and debit cards in 2025 and over three quarters said they’d be carrying physical wallet, not a mobile one.
Tepid consumer response has fed low merchant adoption of mPay acceptance methods. The same survey by Sage Pay indicates the number one response among small and medium sized business owners in the U.K. to the question “What would make you consider accepting mPay products in the future,” was “Customer Demand.” 80 percent of those polled indicated that in the face of an upswell in consumer interest they would make the mobile jump.
Fingerprint recognition did seem to garner some interest with 47 thought they could be using it by that point in time. Another possibility is that consumers may fall out of love with credit and debit cards in favor of the U.K.’s new bank backed P2P network. MPD CEO Karen Webster wrote about the potentially game-changing implications of that expanding past P2P and beyond Britain’s shore here.
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