Digital Wallet: Era of Cashless Future

Mobile wallets also sometimes called electronic/e-wallets, virtual wallets, digital wallets and similar terms are mobile applications that enable financial transactions. They help customers like us to send payments for things we want to buy with just a few taps on the phone.

It is the era of digitalization and globalization and it is not surprising that money will also follow the suit. There was a time when the need of plastic money arose and it replaced the liquid cash in the pockets. Recent trends reflect that digital money kept in mobile wallets are replacing the credit cards and debit cards. Expanding smartphone user base and rising mobile internet penetration to propel growth in India mobile wallet market.

In the current demonetization scenario, the need of digital money arose like ever before. Demonetization has sparked a new digital economy in India. It has led to an increased use of Digital Wallets. According to financial analysts, by 2018 the mobile wallet market in India will grow at a CAGR of 140%. The vision of connecting Indians through digital media has been further encouraged by this move on the part of the government. Some mobile wallet providers are giving facilities to unbanked consumers to deposit money into their wallet through agents, but that is geographically very limited.

The m-wallet (mobile wallet) segment broadly consists of services related to banking transactions, transfer of money as well as value-added services like bill payments, shopping, ticketing, etc. Of these services, m-wallets are primarily used for the transferring money, followed by the payment of bills. These digital wallets not only help in paying electricity, DTH, and transport bills, but they also enable payments at nearby mom-and-pop stores that are already registered for these services. Some of the major m-wallet players are Airtel Money, mRupee, Vodafone m-Pesa, Oxigen Wallet, Paytm, Mobikwik and Idea Money (VMSI). With demonetization in effect, several digital payment solution providers have created innovative ways to attract new customers. The result has been mobile wallets like Paytm witnessing 200 percent increase in app download numbers, and Ola Money seeing a 1,500 percent increase in wallet recharges.

There is just too much money going into the mobile payments industry. The industry of mobile wallet has too much to promise on the outside, which has caused many public companies’ valuations to be inflated. Some companies are also actively investing in mobile payment startups that could have strategic value for them. Investors are also pumping huge amounts of money into startups that aren’t even close to profitable. Putting money into something is easy but the tricky part is getting it out.