The Future of Money in a Mobile Age

When I use the Starbucks app on my smart phone to pay for a cup of tea in the morning, I often think how convenient it is and wonder when our wallets will become unnecessary as long as we have our phones. Now, the folks at the Pew Internet and American Life Project have done a survey on just that subject and their findings are fairly predictable. Many people (65%) surveyed said that the security, convenience, and other benefits of “mobile wallet” systems will lead to widespread adoption of these technologies for everyday purchases by 2020.  Others—including some who are generally positive about the future of mobile payments—expect this process to unfold relatively slowly due to a combination of privacy fears, a desire for anonymous payments, demographic inertia, a lack of infrastructure to support widespread adoption, and resistance from those with a financial stake in the existing payment structure.