Miconex, which leverages payment solutions to help drive local spending, is rolling out digital gift card technology across the UK.
Sunderland, Watford, Gloucester, Malmesbury, Perth, Scarborough, Wimbledon, Ipswich, Swansea, Worthing, Arran, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Bradford, Edinburgh and Colchester are the first places in the UK to introduce the place based digital e-card gifting technology from the Scottish FinTech.
The technology allows the towns and cities to have their own digital gift card, which works though the Mastercard network, digital wallet services such as Apple Pay and Google Pay, and a new Love Local app.
Many of Miconex’s existing physical gift card programmes are introducing a digital e-card as an additional option for customers, including Sunderland, who launched the Sunderland Gift Card in 2020.
Colin Munro, managing director of Miconex, said, “The pandemic has exacerbated the challenges faced by our towns and cities. A High Streets Taskforce report for 2020/21 found that 10 million fewer people visited each of England’s regional cities on average during the pandemic. Encouraging consumers back to the high street, and making the high street attractive to consumers of all ages is a key focus for places.
“The statistics are clear. By 2022, mobile payments will eclipse both cash and credit card as the preferred way to pay. By 2023, 12 million people in the UK will pull out their phone to make payments. And it is younger people who are leading this drive, with 48% of 18-34 year olds using digital wallets.”
Munro continued, “Interestingly, the GCVA also found that it was the younger cohort, 25-44 year olds, who were most likely to view gift cards as a mutually beneficial means of funding local establishments. Towns and cities want smart solutions to future proofing their high streets, and that’s what digital gift cards offer.”
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