The saying “Cash is King” may be a thing of the past if the world accepts and adopts the current disruptions.
Or maybe we don’t have much of a choice because tech is offering quick solutions when we need them most.
How? Cash was dying slowly until the novel Covid-19 came, and no one wanted to touch paper money anymore.
The crisis, however, meant the perfect opportunity for market shakers like Square and PayPal, the two firms branded the present-day community bank for the tech-savvy millennial and Gen Z.
Stocks for these companies are hitting the roof in 2020 as customers avoid cash, move to online shopping platforms, and pay digitally in a progressively contactless environment.
According to a study by the Fransisco-based Federal Reserve Bank, much as we may link the death of cash to a health crisis, people had begun ditching paper money even before Corona.
Shares for PayPal (PYPL) have increased a whopping 65 percent, while Square (SQ) has done two-fold and more in 2020. With those figures, both firms have set a record high, and signs show each stock may grow even further.
Market analysts have particularly cited Square’s popular application, the Cash App. Recently, Andrew Jeffrey of SunTrust increased his Square price target to $150 per share— almost 20 percent above present levels.
“Square may take away a significant amount of direct deposit from traditional banking institutions,” Jeffrey hinted, explaining that “the effects of a pandemic show Cash App’s distinctive role, which may eventually replace traditional checking accounts.”
PayPal is also making the most of this rare opportunity via platforms like PayPal micropayments UK. Analysts predict a brighter future.
“Even as the governments lift Coronavirus lockdowns slowly around the world, the need and use of PayPal services are still as high as witnessed in April,” According to Lisa Ellis of MoffettNathanson.
Ellis, who spoke to PayPal boss Dan Schulman said that the CEO mentioned that there’s “absolute certainty” the company will onboard not less than 15 million new users in Q2.
The takeaway
The take-out from the current disruption is that customer needs are changing, and only brands that stand out to solve meet these demands will survive and thrive.
Author Bio: Payment industry guru Taylor Cole is a passionate payments expert who understands the complex world of merchant accounts. He also writes non-fiction, on subjects ranging from personal finance to stocks to cryptopay. He enjoys eating pie on his backyard porch, as should all right-thinking people.