Over a quarter of Kilkenny businesses want to go fully cashless

Over a quarter of Kilkenny businesses now say they are ready to fully embrace cashless payments according to a recent survey.
 
BOI Payment Acceptance (BOIPA), a leading provider of payment technology solutions, recently surveyed Irish businesses about the current payment landscape as well as business confidence and concerns.

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As well as offering quicker and more seamless transactions in-store, 55% of Kilkenny businesses also said accepting more card payments at the expense of cash is more cost effective, safer and more secure than handling cash and helps with administrative tasks. Two in five businesses nationally felt the general increase in card over cash transaction had made no material change to how they run their business.

A large proportion of Irish businesses are unaware that there is no contactless limit on mobile wallet transactions. 42% of businesses nationally were unaware there is no automatic cap on transactions made through phones and wearable devices. Kilkenny (26%), along with merchants in Westmeath (26%), Tipperary (28%), Wicklow (30%) and Cavan (31%) bucked the trend by bettering the national average.  

64% of BOIPA customers expect to grow this year despite running costs and the cost of living crisis dominating as key concerns

Over six in ten Kilkenny businesses believe their business will grow over the next 12 months despite global economic uncertainty. Unsurprisingly running costs (93%) and the cost of living crisis (76%) were the main concerns the majority of businesses had with just under  3 in 10 businesses has seen some return to increased cash usage because of the cost of living crisis.

Role of digital payments as a service is growing

BOI Payment Acceptance’s General Manager Conor Quirke notes how the survey’s findings signal businesses’ growing consciousness of the benefits from the continued advances in the digital payments sector.

"The number of businesses unaware of the absence of a contactless limit on phones and watches may seem high but, given that businesses claimed less than 10% of transactions were made through mobile wallets just two years ago, the potential of this new payment trend is still being realised.”

“Our findings show that businesses are becoming accustomed to realising the adjacent service benefits digital payment technology offers -  from reducing cash lodgement trips to the bank branch, managing day-to-day cash flow through to streamlining administrative tasks and planning. And let’s not forget the reduced security risk of not having large amounts or indeed any cash on site.