London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Oct 23, 2026

Mobile payments undermine banks' battle for credit card dominance

Mobile payments undermine banks' battle for credit card dominance

The holiday shopping season is when consumers rack up the most debt, and banks want that to happen on their credit cards. But as Americans increasingly pay on mobile phones, analysts say it’s becoming harder for banks to stay “top of wallet.”

Google Pay, PayPal Checkout and Apple Pay let you pick a default card to store on file. As people increasingly pay on mobile phones, they’re less likely to stop and think about which card has the most rewards. Some say they’ll go with what’s easiest.

Banks are battling to get consumers using their credit cards for holiday shopping. But faster mobile payment options are making that more difficult.

As consumers shop on their phones, analysts say they may end up using whichever card is automatically stored instead instead of considering rewards.

Gerard du Toit, banking consultant at Bain, said smartphone shopping “changes the equation” for credit card habits — it takes something “dramatically better” to unseat people from their default payment method.

“When you’re carrying your wallet, you make conscience decisions about which card to use,” he said. “With mobile you have a registered card on file, and you’re going to stick with that card in perpetuity unless something happens to jolt you out of using that card.”

To get people on board, banks have historically offered rewards and cash-back, which can be a short-term loss leader. J.P. Morgan’s popular Chase Sapphire Card resulted in a $330 million charge last year after credit-card customers redeemed points faster than anticipated. Capital One, American Express, and Citi also compete on attractive cash-back and rewards programs.

Holidays are typically a key time for banks to sign people up for these offers. This year, 23% of consumers say they planned to open a new credit card during the holidays, according to a recent Experian survey. Retail card balances are now up to $90 billion -a 7% increase from five years ago.

While smaller every-day purchases like groceries or gas drive interchange revenue as someone swipes a card, bigger-ticket year-end gifts can bring larger recurring interest revenue.

“This is the time of year people go into debt,” said Ben Sabloff, AQN Strategies founder and CEO. “For the banks, being in your wallet this time of year is helpful for driving interest.”


Move to mobile shopping

Getting in your wallet increasingly includes digital wallets. PayPal Wallet, Apple Pay, Google Pay offer ways to streamline the check-out process. While they allow you to load multiple payment methods, some tech players are now offering their own cash-back cards with rewards. The Apple Card, for example, gives daily cash back and is used through the app.

More consumers are making use of mobile wallets, according to Deloitte. The firm’s holiday survey showed the share of shoppers making a purchase on mobile phones doubled in the past five years. This year marks the first time that more than half of those Deloitte surveyed plan to use their smartphone, in some capacity, for holiday shopping online. Desktop computers have seen a slight shift down to 75%, while tablets remain steady at 22%.

Deloitte’s U.S. payments leader Zach Aron said mobile is “by far and away” where people will say it’s how they want to pay going forward. But rewards cards aren’t top of mind.

“How often you pick the funding instrument, it’s pretty low,” Aron said. “The predominant instrument winds up being your bank account or your debit card.”

Aron said it adds pressure on banks to become the top credit card or payment method in a person’s actual mobile wallet. The stakes are high for banks when it comes to credit cards. It’s the top payments revenue driver, with a compound annual growth rate of between 8% and 9%, according to Aron.

“Credit cards remain one of the relative bright spots in the banks in payments despite all the completion and cost rising to give more value back to the consumer,” Deloitte’s Aron said. “To continue to drive usage on cards and maintain what are still healthy revenues and margins, you have to drive rewards.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Government Injects One Hundred and Forty Million Pounds to Expand Urgent Care Ahead of Winter Crisis
Department of Health Warns Further Pay Rises Will Derail National Health Service Waiting List Targets
Major Environmental Emergency Declared in South Wales Following Aerospace Kerosene Spill
Tank Barrel Production Returns to Britain as Defence Contractors Accelerate Domestic Rearmament
Government Approves Controversial Jackdaw Gasfield Development in the North Sea
National Health Service Maternity Safety Review Condemned Over Flawed Artificial Intelligence Integration
Dozens of United Kingdom Government Services Taken Offline Amid Critical Software Vulnerability
Barclays Announces Five Thousand Job Cuts Citing Artificial Intelligence Productivity Gains
Treasury Relaxes Post-Financial Crisis Accountability Rules for City of London Executives
United Kingdom Government Issues Unprecedented Guidance Urging Citizens to Stockpile Essential Supplies
United Kingdom Consumer Inflation Accelerates to Eleven-Month High Driven by Transport Costs
United Kingdom Public Sector Net Debt Breaches Three Trillion Pounds Ahead of Autumn Budget
Department for Science, Innovation and Technology Commits Fifty Million Pounds to Establish Regional Artificial Intelligence Innovation Clusters
Ofgem Directs Major Energy Suppliers to Expand Vulnerable Household Support Funds Ahead of Winter Heating Season
Home Office and National Police Chiefs Council Unveil New Intelligence-Led Strategy to Tackle Organised Immigration Crime Networks
First Minister John Swinney Secures Scottish Parliament Approval for Comprehensive Climate and Green Energy Infrastructure Strategy
National Health Service England and Trades Union Congress Finalize Agreement on Emergency Winter Staffing and Pay Frameworks
HM Treasury and Department for Business and Trade Announce Multi-Billion-Pound Sovereign Investment Pact to Spur Regional Advanced Manufacturing
Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey Signals Potential for Faster Interest Rate Cuts as Domestic Inflation Pressures Ease Below Forecasts
Parliamentary Inquiry Highlights Urgent Need to Address Housing Shortage as Scottish Completions Hit Eleven-Year Low
United Kingdom and Singapore Sign Comprehensive Financial Agreement to Deepen Digital and Sustainable Market Ties
Greggs Announces Plan to Close Four Manufacturing Facilities and Cut Seven Hundred and Forty Jobs
International Monetary Fund Raises United Kingdom Economic Growth Forecast While Warning of Inflationary Pressures
Energy Security and Net Zero Committee Urges Government to Shift Policy Costs Onto Gas to Lower Household Bills
Housebuilding Across Scotland Plummets to Eleven-Year Low Despite Government Pledges to Tackle National Housing Emergency
Greggs Announces Factory Closures Across Northern England and Scotland Affecting Seven Hundred Forty Jobs
United Kingdom and Singapore Conclude Eleventh Financial Dialogue in Singapore to Deepen Cooperation on Digital Finance and Capital Markets
Energy Security and Net Zero Committee Urges Government to Shift Policy Costs to Gas Bills and Tap Windfall Profits to Lower Consumer Prices
British Broadcasting Corporation Announces Major Cost-Cutting Overhaul to Close Linear Broadcast Services for Television Channels BBC Three and BBC Scotland Alongside Digital Radio Station BBC Radio Four Extra
London Capital Markets Face Renewed Scrutiny After High-Profile Offerings Underperform Post-Listing
Green Party Wins Historic First Westminster Parliamentary By-Election in Gorton and Denton
Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds Unveils Sweeping Regulatory Overhaul for English Water Industry
United Kingdom Health Security Agency Confirms Thirty-Four Cases in Kent Meningitis Outbreak
Ministry of Defence Prepares Heat Pump Subsidy Cuts to Fund Urgent Military Modernization
British and European Union Officials Schedule Long-Awaited Bilateral Leaders Summit for November Twentieth
Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey Urges Strict Fiscal Credibility to Protect British Bond Markets
United Kingdom Inflation Rises to Three Point One Percent Driven by Escalating Fuel Costs
Profit Warnings Among London-Listed Companies Reach Two-Year High Amid Global Energy Shocks
Chancellor John Healey Signals Targeted Tax Changes on Banks and London Corporate Offices Ahead of Budget
British Government Reallocates Twenty-Five Per Cent of International Climate Finance to Global Biodiversity Projects
Initial British Carbon Border Taxes Set to Undercut Parallel European Union Tariffs on Industrial Imports
Whitehall Prepares National Zero-Interest Loan Initiative to Accelerate Domestic Heat Pump and Solar Adoption
European Union Offers British Automakers Access to Hybrid Vehicle Trade Protections Subject to Strict Regulatory Alignment
British Probation Officers Threaten Widespread Industrial Action After Rejecting Five Per Cent Government Pay Offer
Microsoft Abandons Major British Artificial Intelligence Data Centre Citing Severe National Grid Power Constraints
United Kingdom Inflation Accelerates to Three Point Four Per Cent Ahead of Chancellor John Healey's Inaugural Autumn Budget
Surging Cloned Number Plates Severely Complicate Traffic Enforcement and Police Investigations
Mounting Opposition Challenges Planned Rollout of Autonomous Taxis Across London
Influential Think Tank Urges Rejoining European Union to Navigate Geopolitical Crises
Government Review Recommends Slashing Benefits to Fund Youth Employment Initiatives
×