WILL WE REALLY NEED CARDS IN THE FUTURE?
While removing the numbers may reduce credit card fraud, emerging smart retail technologies may remove the need for cards altogether.
Smartphone payments are already becoming the norm, removing the need for physical cards. GlobalData revealed a 58 per cent growth in mobile wallet payments in Australia in 2023, to A$146.9 billion. In October 2024, 44 per cent of payments were “device-present” transactions.
Amazon’s innovative Just-Walk-Out technology has also removed the need for consumers to bring a physical credit or debit card altogether.
This technology is available at more than 70 Amazon-owned stores, and at more than 85 third-party locations across the US, UK, and Australia. These include sports stadiums, airports, grocery stores, convenience stores and college campuses.
The technology uses cameras, weight sensors and a combination of advanced AI technologies to enable shoppers in physical stores to make purchases without having to swipe or tap their cards at the checkout line.
Such technology is now being offered by a variety of other vendors including Trigo, Cognizant and Grabango. It is also being trialled across other international retailers, including supermarket chains Tesco and ALDI.
While Just-Walk-Out removes the need to carry a physical card, at some point consumers still need to enter their card details into an app. So, to avoid cards and numbers completely, smart retail tech providers are moving to biometric alternatives, like facial recognition payments.
Considering the speed at which smart retail and payment technology is entering the marketplace, it is likely physical credit cards, numberless or not, will soon become redundant, replaced by biometric payment options.
Gary Mortimer is Professor of Marketing and Consumer Behaviour, Queensland University of Technology. Cassandra Cross is Associate Dean (Learning & Teaching) Faculty of Creative Industries, Education and Social Justice, Queensland University of Technology. This commentary first appeared on The Conversation.
