Tell me, honestly: do you have any money on you?
No, I’m not suggesting you’re broke or asking about your account balance; I’m talking about cold, hard cash that you actually, physically carry in your wallet.
None? Thought so. Me, neither.
I was meeting a client for coffee the other day and I saw a homeless man on the street. He was walking up and down the sidewalk, asking people for money. You know what the most common answer he got was? “Sorry, buddy, I don’t have any cash.”
And you know what? For the first time in my life, I actually believed that.
Debit and credit cards are becoming more and more ubiquitous these days. As a result, people are less and less likely to carry cash—and Poland is at the very forefront of this phenomenon in Europe.
Poles love digital banking. A study conducted by MasterCard shows that over 91% of Polish respondents make online payments at least once a month (the European average is 85%). Moreover, Deloitte’s CEE Fintech report values the Polish fintech market at almost €860 million. Both of these stats put Poland in the leader’s seat in this part of Europe.
Digital banking in Poland may be doing better than ever now, but that wasn’t always the case—far from it, actually. Looking back on the beginnings of digital banking in our country, it’s safe to say we have come a long way. A really, really long way.
In this article, I’d like to take you through the evolution of online banking, both in Poland and globally, by showcasing apps and trends you should definitely keep an eye on.