The internet is playing an increasingly important role in the lives of businesses and individuals all over the world. With an increasing number of business processes, services and offerings available online, it is important to stop and take stock of the impacts of this increase in online activity. Digital commerce is having a major impact on the financial sector, in a number of different ways.
How we shop has been revolutionised by e-commerce. Never before have we had such convenient access to stores and the ability to shop at any time day or night. This change in behaviour has also required banks and financial institutions to adapt their offerings to cope with these emerging trends. However, this shift has also given birth to the digital bank, third-party financial intermediaries, new investment strategies, and a range of other new additions that are having a real effect on the shifting financial paradigm. eCommerce and banking are heavily reliant on each other and as digital commerce continues to grow, how we manage and spend our money is touted to change.
Let’s take a closer look at how digital commerce has influenced the financial industry and what we can expect moving forward.
Digital Banking
With just about every other service becoming digitised, it’s no surprise that we are now seeing a new wave of online-only banks. These digital banks offer customers a convenient means of managing their finances and carrying out day-to-day banking tasks. The incredible growth of e-commerce in recent years has helped to catapult digital banking forward with more consumers opting to bank with digital banks due to their convenience, lower fees, 24/7 access and easy to use platforms.
Third-Party Intermediaries
PayPal was originally developed to provide users with a safer alternative for users completing transactions online. Instead of giving your credit card or banking information to someone online, you simply used Paypal as an intermediary to manage the transaction for you. Nowadays, there are countless platforms just like PayPal that provide a similar service. These online financial intermediaries were developed because of e-commerce and, as digital commerce continues to evolve, so too will PayPal and these other entities.
Investment Opportunities
Just a few short years ago, meetings with financial advisors and bank managers were strictly done in person. However, with the growth of digital commerce, there is now a range of services you can use to create an investment plan, increase your savings and modernize your financial experiences. These services can give you the financial help and guidance you need to manage your money more effectively and take control of your finances in the modern financial landscape.
New Payment Options
Whether you pay online or in-store, there are more ways for you to pay for goods and services than ever before. Mobile wallets can store all of your bank cards, transfer apps allow you to move money to your friends and family’s accounts with a quick tap and NFC payments allow you to make payment using your phone or other types of wearable tech. These new payment options have been developed to meet the growing needs of the modern consumer who need to be able to pay in-store and online securely.
Digital Commerce Will Continue To Shift The Financial Paradigm
As technology becomes more and more ingrained in our culture, we can expect more developments in the financial world. Offering customers a quick, safe and convenient means of paying and managing their money will be key. As digital banks continue to grow in popularity, cryptocurrencies become more recognized and more financial services and methods of payment become available, it will be interesting to see what the financial industry will come up with to meet the growing demands of digital commerce.
