Cash remains an important payment method for millions of consumers, particularly those who are unbanked or underbanked. To better serve these customers, retailers are expanding cash-to-digital payment options that bridge the gap between physical currency and online commerce. By allowing shoppers to load cash directly into digital accounts, merchants can make e-commerce more accessible while reducing reliance on gift cards and traditional banking services.
Amazon has added the ability for consumers to load that cash into an Amazon account at 7-Eleven stores. Once funds are loaded, consumers can then spend this money on Amazon’s site. As Tech Crunch reported, this isn’t new technology, but the addition of 7-Eleven provides more locations, makes it more convenient than gift cards for cash customers to shop on Amazon and strengthens the partnership that Amazon has with 7-Eleven:
Amazon Cash, the service that lets consumers add cash to their Amazon.com balance at brick-and-mortar retailers, is now available at nearly 8,000 7-Eleven convenience stores, the companies announced today. That’s a significant expansion for Amazon Cash, which was previously available at retailers like CVS, Speedway and GameStop, along with a handful of other supermarket chains and convenience stores.
To use Amazon Cash at a 7-Eleven, customers present a personalized barcode found in their Amazon app to the cashier along with the money they want to load. The barcode also can be sent via a text, or printed. The cashier then scans the barcode, which immediately adds the funds to the customer’s account balance on Amazon.com. Customers can load between $15 and $500 in a single transaction, with no fees.
This is an additional way that Amazon is reaching out to the large U.S. unbanked and underbanked populations which traditionally have been core Walmart customers:
Allowing customers to use cash to pay is only one way retailers are targeting this market. Both Walmart and Amazon this year made it easier for customers on government assistance to shop their sites and use their services, too.
Expanding cash-loading locations helps make online shopping more inclusive by giving cash-preferred consumers a simple way to participate in the digital economy. As retailers continue investing in alternative payment methods, services like Amazon Cash will remain an important strategy for reaching underserved consumers, increasing customer loyalty, and expanding access to digital commerce.
Overview by Sarah Grotta, Director, Debit Advisory Service at Mercator Advisory Group
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