Credit cards will be largely obsolete and replaced by digital payments within 20 years , according to the president of PayPal , Dan Schulman . speaking at an investment conference , he suggested that modern payment methods such as contactless or QR code payments will overtake cards , and that customers will rely more on front - end logistics than back - end logistics when choosing their preferred payment . Despite his prediction , credit and debit card use is rising in the US , with prices growing by $ 300 between 2015 and 2016 , and customers preferring them for cash in store .
Credit cards will be largely obsolete and replaced by digital payments within 20 years, according to the CEO of PayPal, Dan Schulman. Speaking at an investment conference, he suggested that modern payment methods such as contactless or QR code payments will overtake cards, and that customers will focus more on front-end benefits than back-end logistics when choosing their preferred method. Despite his prediction, credit and debit card use is rising in the US, with volume growing by $190bn between 2015 and 2016, and customers preferring them for transactions in store.