Consumers are becoming increasingly comfortable managing money without physical cards or human assistance, creating new opportunities for companies focused on driving self-service engagement.
A series of new reports from PYMNTS Intelligence and the 2025 Pulse Debit Issuer Study suggest that digital banking users are accelerating the adoption of mobile wallets, Pay by Bank transactions and app-driven financial management tools. The trend is particularly pronounced among younger and lower-income consumers who already rely heavily on smartphones for commerce, payments and account management.
The findings matter for organizations in collections and consumer finance because they reinforce how quickly payment behavior is moving toward embedded, mobile-first experiences. Consumers are showing a growing willingness to authorize payments directly from bank accounts, manage recurring payments digitally, and engage through app-based authentication rather than traditional card or call center interactions.
One PYMNTS report found that 44.6% of digital bank customers prefer using digital wallets, roughly double the broader banking population. More importantly for organizations seeking lower-friction payment experiences, 72% of consumers said Pay by Bank could replace debit cards if rewards and buyer protections were attached to the experience.
The behavioral shift appears tied to familiarity with digital-first financial management. More than half of digital bank users are millennials or Gen Z, and these consumers already show strong adoption of tokenized payments, mobile commerce and login-based authentication flows. The report also found digital bank users would shift 35.4% of account-to-account transactions to Pay by Bank if incentives and protections were offered.
For collection operations and lenders trying to drive more self-service, the findings suggest consumers may be more receptive to direct-from-account payment options than many organizations assume, particularly if the experience feels fast, secure and mobile-native.
At the same time, the broader mobile wallet market is becoming increasingly competitive. Apple Pay remains the dominant player, but rivals are gaining traction quickly. PYMNTS found that 31% of consumers used a mobile wallet in-store within the past seven days, up from 14% in 2024. Google Pay, PayPal and Cash App all posted significant gains in usage as consumers become more accustomed to tap-to-pay and wallet-based checkout experiences.
The Pulse Debit Issuer Study highlights another important operational trend: consumers increasingly expect to manage payment credentials digitally, including recurring subscriptions, stored cards and mobile wallet provisioning. The study notes that banks offering visibility into recurring payments and stored credentials experience fewer disputes and unnecessary declines, while helping consumers continue using digital payment methods instead of switching providers.
Taken together, the reports suggest the next phase of payments competition may center less on replacing cards entirely and more on controlling the digital self-service experience surrounding the payment itself. For organizations focused on collections and consumer finance, that could mean future success depends as much on seamless mobile engagement and embedded payment experiences as traditional collection strategies.
