But there are thousands of times more retail transactions on any given day. So, modernizing the retail payments system is a top priority. Two to three years from now, you will be able to execute transactions between yourselves in real time—a major advance over today’s lags. These prospects have the Bank thinking hard about the future of money, especially cash.
A decade ago, more than half of all transactions in Canada were done with cash. Today, that number has dropped to about one-third. It is more and more common to see people tap a card or take out their phone to make a payment.