Will Mobile Payments Mean The End Of Credit Cards?

CNNMoney has an interesting article this week predicting that the mobile wallet will soon replace our old-fashioned credit cards.  And if you look at the data, they make a pretty good case…

The physical credit card itself has not changed significantly in the past few decades.  We’ve seen experiments with different swipe and contactless payment technologies, but none have taken off - mostly because replacing your credit card with some other card, key chain, or tab isn’t really offering the consumer anything better.  But the cell phone offers something new.

Consumers are already carrying their mobile phones.  In fact, most people are very, very rarely without their phone.  Adding mobile payment options to your phone means one less thing you have to carry in your wallet.  Come to think of it, I stopped carrying cash years ago, so the only things I have in my wallet are credit cards, my driver’s license, and my VIP card to a local sushi restaurant.  If given the opportunity, I would love to ditch my wallet completely.

With all of the major players in the credit industry looking to roll out mobile wallet options this year, I may not have to wait much longer…