Plastic payment cards, for decades a default mode of payment, are being passed over for electronic payments made with digital wallets held in proximity to point-of-sale terminals. Contactless payments, which include digital wallets and contactless cards, surged 40% in the spring of 2020, as people sought to avoid touching germ-carrying cash or payment terminals.*
*CNBC, Contactless payments jump 40% as shoppers fear germs on cash and credit cards, Mastercard says,” by Kate Rooney, April 29, 2020