A digital wallet is a secure way to store your personal information, such as your credit card numbers and bank account details. By using a digital wallet, you can easily access your information when you need it, without having to carry around multiple pieces of paper.
It is a convenient way to store your credit, debit, and many other cards information. You can use a digital wallet to make purchases online, pay bills, and more.
Digital wallets are becoming more popular as they offer benefits such as convenience and security. You may use a digital wallet to digitize your boarding pass, for example, or some identity documents. All loyalty cards can be digitized as well, halving the size of many physical wallets.
What is a digital wallet?
A digital wallet is usually an app you can access from your mobile, tablet or personal computer using personal credential. Safe wallets require some kind of strong authentication, such as a one-time-password (or OTP) or biometric recognition. Some advanced services may also rely on sophisticated algorithms that evaluate the riskiness of a transaction, analysing a set of data, like the device being used by the user or his/her behavioural pattern when navigating the internet or using an app.
Even the way you hold your mobile can be used to determine whether the person trying to access and use your digital wallet is you - or either a fraudster.
5.2 billion digital wallet users by 2026
According to a study from Juniper Research, the number of digital wallet users will surpass 5.2 billion in 2026. A growth of over 53% from the 3.4 billion in 2022.
The growth of digital wallets will be fuelled by superapps, multipurpose apps able to integrate digital payments alongside other services, including wealth management and eCommerce.
Digital Wallets to boom in Asia Pacific
The study by Juniper Research identified three countries in Asia Pacific primed for rapid growth over the next four years:
- Philippines
- Thailand
- Vietnam
In these countries, digital wallets adoption will near 75% of the population by 2026.
The QR code is flourishing in Asia
Asia Pacific countries are also popular markets for payments and services based on QR code scanning.
QR code-based solution providers need to work on innovative services in order to remain competitive or enter new markets. For example, Juniper Research suggests them to integrate loyalty features and personalised marketing capabilities.
The ability to offer services that incentivize merchant acceptance and provide advantages to consumers is critical to driving adoption.
Digital Wallets and the Metaverse
The Metaverse (or the Metaverses) could be a massive driver for the adoption of digital wallets. It is hard to imagine a less essential tool for anyone who wants to take advantage of the benefits of the metaverse.
On your digital wallet, you can securely store your virtual assets and make them available when and where you need them. You can also use a digital wallet to pay for goods and services in the metaverse. Since most Metaverse platforms work on specific cryptocurrencies, having a specific crypto wallet isn't just the best way to pay for virtual assets (some service providers could develop a wallet that charges your credit card when you buy something in the metaverse - it would be utterly inefficient, but still possible) but it also is the only way to get paid and sell your assets.
