In this emerging debit market
analysis, Mercator Advisory Group suggests the possibility that the next
generation of debit will be strongly impacted by the development of
cash proxies and account tokens as means of:
Hardening security to protect consumer spending accounts
Controlling cost of acceptance
Replacing traditional cash within a digital economy
"The
final frontier of debit product development lies in the reimagining of
what a cash currency is and how best to protect sources of cash funding
in a manner that is cost-effective and efficient for all stakeholders," comments Patricia Hewitt, director of Mercator Advisory Group's Debit Advisory Service and author of the report.
A review of virtual currency schemes with the context of new forms of monetary exchange marketplaces
An examination of the leading marketing dynamics affecting the development of new forms of online token accounts
A discussion of the business model changes inherent in these emerging payment and currency forms
The ways formerly niche products designed for online gamers are evolving into broader payment forms.