We’ve reached the point where it’s a bit weird to pay for something with actual dollar bills. Sales people now get taken aback when one says “cash” because digital technology has completely changed the way that we shop and procure goods and services since the first cash register was invented nearly 147 years ago, just a few years after Canada became a country.
Today, Canada has the highest population growth among G7 countries and merchants have innovated ways to keep up with consumer preferences for faster, more seamless purchases.
Key players across the ecosystem have arrived at the ability to leverage the immediacy and availability of smartphone technology (and culture) to deploy connected devices in the commerce environment. Given that we’re all walking around with smartphones stuffed in our back pockets anyway, advancements like the creation of mobile wallets are smart and favourable to consumers.
In Canada, CIBC is the first financial institution to offer the top 3 leading mobile wallets — including Android Pay — for its clients, launching May 31st.
Here’s why we’re excited to have Android Pay: We’ll never have to carry wallets again. CIBC clients with Android Pay will be able to pay for anything we want — fresh juice, a towering plate of avocado toast or coffee without a card or a wallet, or even a purse for that matter. We can also make in-app purchases with brands like Etsy and OpenTable, for those hard-to-get resos.
CIBC clients can download Android Pay from the Google Play Store now.