Fast move towards cashless society on cards

AUSTRALIANS appear increasingly willing to adopt a cashless society, research reveals, with credit and debit cards overtaking cash as the most common method of payment.

And Aussies are using cards more often for smaller purchases, in line with the explosion in tap-and-go payments at outlets such as supermarkets and cafes, and for transport.

The findings from the Reserve Bank’s latest Consumer Payments Survey, held every three years, reveal an accelerating shift away from cash across all age brackets. Cards now account for 52 per cent of payments, up from 43 per cent in 2013 and more than double what they were when the poll began in 2007.

Cash has fallen from 69 per cent of all payments in 2007 to 37 per cent.

“Consumers of all ages and incomes are, on average, making a smaller share of their payments in cash than they were a decade ago,” report author Mary-Alice Doyle said.

Across a week, the RBA tracked the transactions of more than 1500 respondents.