Uncovering the digital payment divide: Understanding the importance of cash for groups at risk

Abstract

The transition to digital payments is an ongoing trend, yet cash remains important for a substantial and diverse group of individuals. This emerges from a study using rich payment diary data of Dutch consumers. A total of 7% of the respondents report always using cash at points of sale and 28% indicate they cannot do without cash. Cash is especially important for people with low digital literacy, people who are blind or visually impaired, people with limited or no hand function, people with a mild intellectual disability and people who find it difficult to make ends meet on their income. Even though many parties involved in the payment industry are developing their payment solutions to enhance accessibility for a broader audience, there will continue to be people for whom the use of digital payments poses significant challenges. It is therefore essential that cash remains accessible and available.