The recent market turmoil has led many banks to view payments as a ‘safe bet’ and a reliable profit centre when compared with the more exotic banking products. As a result, investments in the payments function appear to have emerged relatively unscathed from cut-backs by the banks as card infrastructure investment is seen as critical for banks’ long-term business strategies.
A survey by Thales undertaken at the height of the ‘credit crunch’ found that:
- 78% of surveyed payment security professionals in the banking industry feel that the credit crunch will prompt a renewed interest in payments
- Over 80% of respondents believe the credit crunch will have little or no effect on their plans and projects for payment innovation
- Innovation in payments will be spread across a variety of new technologies including contactless (41%), mobile payments (34%) and multi-application cards (24%)
- The majority of banks are braced for a surge in cryptographic transaction processing over the next three years as contactless payments take off.