Banking to be Centered Around Smartphone by 2030 as Most Countries Become ‘Functionally Cashless,' Report Forecasts

 NEW YORK–Banking will be centered around the smartphone by 2030 as all countries become functionally cashless, according to a new analysis from GlobalData.

The analysis forecasts that even developing nations in Asia and Africa are jumping straight from physical cash to mobile payments, and that $140 trillion worth of transactions will be made by mobile wallets by 2030.

This prediction is part of GlobalData’s latest report, ‘Tech in 2030 – Thematic Research’, which highlights that—especially in the wake of COVID-19—"consumers are finding it more convenient to manage their finances online, with financial services often embedded into apps.”

Accelerated Adoption

“The omnipresence of smartphones has accelerated the adoption of digital wallets such as Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung as a payment option,” said Beyza Karakoy, thematic analyst at GlobalData. “The pandemic also spurred the adoption of mobile payments as a convenient, contactless alternative to cash. In particular, markets in Asia and Africa have leapfrogged cards and moved straight to mobile payment-based societies. European countries with ambitions of becoming cashless will follow suit.  

Governments will, however, have to provide solutions for people that cannot access the electronic economy. Shifting to cashless societies will reduce the size of the black market and governments will also increasingly explore and develop central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) to tackle this.”

One Big Driver

According to Global Data, Millennials and Gen Z drive shopping using smartphones and social media

“One driver of digital wallets is social commerce, which is popular with Millennial and Gen Z shoppers,” the company said. “Mobile and social commerce involve shopping features integrated within social media platforms.”

“The popularity of social commerce will drive the development of super-apps that offer a diverse range of services, including finance, social media, and ecommerce,” Karakoy continued. “These will be ubiquitous by 2030. Meta is in a good position here, as it has access to more than three billion monthly active users across all its platforms.”