A recent survey conducted by Mastercard has found that 94% of people in the Asia-Pacific region have shifted towards considering the use of emerging payment methods that includes the use of cryptocurrency.
As the range of payment methods expands, the number of people who are willing to try alternative payment methods is also broadening. The Mastercard survey not only indicates the high number of people who were open to trying at least one of the most common emerging payment methods, but also revealed that 69% of Asia-Pacific respondents in the survey said that they would likely use cash less frequently in the coming year.
Sandeep Malhotra, executive vice president, products & innovation, Asia-Pacific, Mastercard commented on the shift in behaviour evidenced by the survey:
“People in the Asia-Pacific region haven’t just adopted new payment technologies — they’ve made deliberate shifts based partly on necessity, but also on considerations around personal safety, security and convenience, at a time when these concerns were paramount,”
The emerging payment options presented in the survey include QR codes, digital or mobile wallets, instalment plans, cryptocurrency and biometrics.
While security concerns and data protection concerns were cited as being one of the main detractors for people using emerging payment methods, the Asia-Pacific region (which includes every country from China to New Zealand) is one of the largest consumers and producers of cryptocurrency related products and platforms.
As one of the world’s largest development and business technology talent pools, these countries are huge contributors to the Bitcoin ecosystem. The openness of people in the Asia-Pacific region to new technologies was outlined by the study, as Malhotra elaborates:
“Consumers in the Asia-Pacific have already gained recognition globally for their openness to new technologies and innovation, and these findings confirm that this trend is only set to continue as more digital payment options rapidly become mainstream in this part of the world.”
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
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