Anna Porra | Source | European Strategy Director at Marqeta

The age of the bulky physical wallet might be moving behind into the rearview, confidence in mobile wallets is growing, and people feel increasingly comfortable that their mobile phone can handle their payment needs and not leave them stranded. While the shift to digital payments was born out of necessity, many are happy to completely step away from in-person banking. And it’s easy to see why - with long queues, inconvenient opening hours, and hygiene concerns particularly during the pandemic creating the perfect storm to shift consumer appetite away from in-person experiences that weren’t very popular to begin with. With physical branches closing at unprecedented rates, banks must ensure they adapt their products and services to operate online seamlessly.