You’ve taken the luxury of stepping away from your desk to take a quick break at the nearby coffee shop during a busy work day. As you reach for your wallet to pay, you get that sinking feeling when you realize you’ve left it back at the office. Everyone has forgotten their wallet at some point – but with the constant desire to remain connected at all times, few of us forget to bring our smartphones with us. The relationship we have with our mobile devices is indicative of the ferocious appetite Canadians have for new technological innovations to access a world of possibilities, anytime, anywhere.

Today, more than 45% of Canadians have smartphones, with daily mobile content usage growing more than 50% in key categories. MasterCard antici­pated this fundamental shift in the way consumers interact and connect with people, opportu­nities, the brands they love, and yes, how they want to pay for that cup of coffee.

In 2005, MasterCard was the first to bring contactless pay­ments to Canadians with the introduction of PayPass, an NFC (Near Field Communication) Tap & Go technology that is a fast and convenient alternative to cash. The technology allows consumers to simply tap their PayPass enabled card or mobile device on a specially equipped merchant terminal and complete a payment without the need to dip and pin or swipe and sign. PayPass, a brand that is already recognized by 90% of Cana­dians, has built a significant footprint across Canada. Nearly 100% of MasterCard credit cards issued in Canada are PayPass-enabled and 19 out of Canada’s 25 largest face-to-face mer­chants are accepting PayPass or have agreed to accept the Tap & Go technology at over 29,000 merchant locations. With the increasing number of PayPass accepting terminals and mil­lions of Canadian MasterCard cardholders tapping millions of times each month, MasterCard is partnering with banks, telco’s and handset manufacturers to roll out NFC payments using mobile phones and drive adop­tion across the country.

As MasterCard continues to introduce mobile payment options to the marketplace, fumbling with cash or carrying a wallet with multiple cards will one day be a thing of the past. Secure mobile wallets that enable consumers to store their credit cards will eventually expand to include government IDs, coupons, and loyalty cards. Although it is in the early days of global adoption, Canada is mak­ing progress toward attaining the right mix of market forces and consumer acceptance. In fact, a recent Mobile Payments Readiness Index (MPRI)study released by MasterCard identi­fied Canada as the second most mobile payment-ready country in the world. The study attri­butes the rank to familiarity with the technology, readiness and willingness to adopt mobile payments. This puts Canada ahead of much bigger markets such as the US and the UK. A key finding of the report empha­sizes that partnership among the players in the mobile pay­ments ecosystem are essential to accelerate the commercial­ization of mobile payments.

Evolving with the needs of Canadian consumers and new technologies, MasterCard Can­ada will continue its 40-year practice of collaborating with key players in the payments indus­try, including merchants, issuers and acquirers, along with govern­ments and other key stakeholder associations, to continue mov­ing the needle toward a world beyond cash.

Everyone has forgotten their wallet at some point – but with the constant desire to remain connected at all times, few of us forget to bring our smartphones with us.

Today, more than 45% of Canadians have smartphones.

A recent Mobile Payments Readiness Index (MPRI) study released by MasterCard identified Canada as the second most mobile payment-ready country in the world.