Mobile payments on the rise but cash decline slows

Consumers are increasingly relying on their mobile phone to make payments rather than carrying bank cards, new data shows.

Two-thirds of adults in the UK were registered with at least one mobile payment service last year, according to an annual report by banking trade body UK Finance.

Use of a phone to pay has jumped in recent years. It is a decade since Apple Pay was launched in the UK.

While cash use continues to decline, the data suggests that the fall is slowing and that notes and coins will remain an important payment option for many people a decade from now.

Consumers are increasingly storing card details on phones or watches and making contactless payments backed up by facial or fingerprint verification, instead of pressing in a PIN.

Nine in 10 users of mobile wallets have their debit card loaded as their default payment method on their phone, with the remainder having registered their credit card.

That suggests phones are being used for everyday payments - with use particularly high for younger consumers, although older age groups are gaining ground.

More than 80% of 16 to 34-year-olds make mobile payments on a regular basis, compared with 22% of the over 65s.