Title: Toward cashless payments? The boost of COVID-19 in the Italian context

Authors: Elvira Anna Graziano; Flaminia Musella; Gerardo Petroccione

Addresses: Link Campus University, Via del Casale San Pio V, 44, 00165 Rome, Italy ' Link Campus University, Via del Casale San Pio V, 44, 00165 Rome, Italy ' University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Columbia 2, 00133 Rome, Italy

Abstract: This article aims to present empirical research to analyse whether the COVID-19 pandemic has affected consumer payment habits in Italy, which is a nation traditionally more inclined to use cash transactions. The survey was conducted through an interview with 836 citizens from November 2021 to February 2022 and revealed a significant increase in digital payments due to the fear of contagion. Using the chi-square test of independence, we can assess that consumers preferred cashless transactions to reduce the risk of infection and that more financially educated people prefer digital payments, reducing financial risk. Related to these findings, our research also analysed whether the pandemic in Italy has also produced a radical transformation in the social and economic spheres. Based on this, further research may focus on the impact that the pandemic has had on other aspects of consumer behaviour, such as savings and investment decisions.

Keywords: COVID-19; payment behaviour; payment habits; M-payment; survey; quantitative analysis.

DOI: 10.1504/GBER.2025.148313

Global Business and Economics Review, 2025 Vol.33 No.3/4, pp.299 - 320

Received: 29 Jan 2023
Accepted: 25 Sep 2023
Published online: 02 Sep 2025 *

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