daVinci Payments “Future of Payments UK” Reveals Continued Desire for Instant Payment Methods and Growing Prevalence of Loyalty Programs

National research outlines UK payments habits for 2021 and beyond

LONDON--()--As the acceleration of digital payments adoption continues, daVinci Payments released a new national UK study, identifying how people prefer to receive payments. The 2021 edition of daVinci Payments’ “Future of Payments UK” study provides insights into how consumers and employees like to be rewarded and paid.

“New, non-traditional payments are becoming a mainstay, making it imperative for businesses to embrace new payment innovations to meet consumers’ demand and need for instant payments,” said Sebastien Van Schalkwyk, managing director, Europe at daVinci Payments. “Additionally, as people continue to adopt mobile wallets and payment apps as part of their routine, businesses are quickly seeing the value of merging payment and loyalty programs. For brands to build and nurture relationships with consumers, they’ll need to offer increased convenience when it comes to payments—and pairing that accessibility with digital incentives only further drives loyalty.”

The top findings and trends are detailed below:

Contactless payments are becoming more mainstream. Physical cards still are the preferred choice of payment; daVinci’s study, however, found that as more people realize how easy, speedy, secure and accessible digital payments can be, mobile wallets and payment apps have been quickly gaining mass popularity.

  • More than 50% of consumers in the UK say that 75% or more of their payments are now contactless.
  • The use of mobile wallets and payment apps linked to a credit card, debit card or prepaid card for in-person payments continues to rise in prevalence in the UK—with more than 50% having received payments via payment apps and more than 20% via mobile wallets in the last six months.
  • Payment app usage also continues to rise in popularity for online payments and is now a payment preference of choice for 38% of consumers.

Brands and employers looking to incentivise employees and consumers should note an increasing amount of people care about instant payments and rewards, as indicated below:

  • When asked if respondents would prefer to receive a virtual card delivered or a physical card mailed to their home, 52% prefer to receive an instant virtual card.
  • For cash back rewards for purchases, when given the choice between receiving a bank account payment that takes 2 days to process and an instant payment like a prepaid card, nearly 40% of UK consumers would choose to receive an instant payment prepaid card rather than waiting to be paid.
  • If they received a prepaid card for a cash back reward, 56% of consumers would prefer an instant virtual prepaid card over a physical prepaid card that is mailed to them.

As both incentivising consumers and offering prepaid cards can spur repeat purchases, the following study results highlight the growing prevalence of loyalty programs, as they can appeal to consumers and increase revenue.

  • 86% of respondents said a loyalty program is an important factor in making their purchasing decisions.
  • 40% reported participating in 4 or more loyalty programs.
  • Consumers overwhelmingly prefer receiving a prepaid card that can be spent anywhere to convert loyalty points for payment over receiving a gift card for a specific retailer or a cheque.
  • If they received a prepaid card for a loyalty program reward, 52% prefer to receive a physical card and 48% prefer a virtual prepaid card sent to them via email or text, highlighting the importance of giving the choice to consumers.

The study is available for download here - http://www.davincipayments.co.uk/research-studies/future-of-payments-study-uk-2021/.

About daVinci Payments

daVinci delivers corporate funded payments with greater value for all stakeholders. Blending art, science and a quarter-century of experience, daVinci delivers the most advanced payment solutions including virtual and physical prepaid, push pay and beyond with branded engagement for businesses, their contractors, customers, employees, participants and channel partners around the world. Learn more about daVinci’s payment solutions at www.davincipayments.co.uk.

daVinci is owned by Syncapay, a holding company, “Investing in The New Frontier of Payments” which also owns North Lane Technologies and is backed by Bain Capital Ventures and Silversmith Capital Partners.

Contacts

Chris Pham
cpham@ideagrove.com

Release Summary

With the acceleration of digital payments, daVinci Payments released a new national UK study, identifying how people prefer to receive payments.

Contacts

Chris Pham
cpham@ideagrove.com