By: Thomas I. Likness
EBC News Service

(Eagle News) — The pandemic has drastically changed the way Canadians handle money according to a report by payment company Square, Inc.

As a matter of fact, fewer Canadians are handling cash, opting instead to pay with plastic.

Many countries have slowly been moving toward a cashless economy but Covid-19 sped things up.

In Canada, the use of cash has dropped by almost half in the last 12 months.

“Twenty-two percent of local business purchases are paid with cash today, compared with 39% pre-Covid,” the report noted.

“We estimate the shift away from using cash over the past year in Canada would have taken more than four years without the pandemic,” said Felipe Chacon, an economist at Square.

The company says more and more Canadians businesses don’t want to handle money.

“One in five businesses no longer accept cash, compared to one in 20 this time last year,” the company said in its report.

Canadian businesses and their customers have embraced online shopping at a higher rate than most other countries.

According to Square, 61% of all businesses in Canada sell online — up 20% from pre-Covid days. That compares to 55 % in the United Kingdom and just 45% in the United States.
(Eagle News Service)