COVID-19 Drove Shift in Payment Methods as Pandemic Grew, Says Mastercard

Contactless transactions grew twice as fast as noncontactless ones in grocery and drug stores as the COVID-19 pandemic spread between February and March, said a Mastercard study released Wednesday of 17,000 consumers in 19 countries. Some 79% of consumers used contactless payments in the period, citing safety and cleanliness as drivers. Worldwide, 46% of respondents said they have replaced their most-used payment card for a contactless one, 52% among those under 35. Three-quarters of those surveyed said they will continue to use contactless post-pandemic.