Digital payment services in Poland as assistive technology and empowering tool for consumers with disabilities

The retail payments market is developing, and the implementation of digital payments has been one of the trends in consumer finance worldwide. This is the first study to jointly examine the perception of digital payment methods and financial services' role, for consumers with and without disabilities. First, based on a nationwide survey on Internet users in Poland, the authors compared the popularity of selected financial services among consumers, then the perception of characteristics of payment methods. The results revealed that consumers with disabilities use a wide range of payment services, and they are included in digital finance. Moreover, contactless payment cards are used by consumers with disabilities even more often than by consumers on average. The results suggest that the control over finances make digital payments an important empowering tool for consumers with disabilities. Finally, the paper provides recommendations for the banking sector, on strategies for offering digital financial services. This paper examines the potential of new cashless payment methods as an empowering and assistive technologies for consumers with disabilities.The research found that consumers with disabilities use a wide range of payment services, and contactless payment cards are used by them even more often than by non-disabled people.People with disabilities also perceive payment cards as giving great control over their personal finance. This suggest that new payment methods might be their assistive and empowering tool of everyday life.Consequently, the research recommends that entities designing new payment methods should meet the needs of people with disabilities, because they could be improving their shopping and banking experience with appropriate adjustments.