Not wanting to touch anything is having a dramatic impact on consumer habits.

Amid the coronavirus crisis, Americans are abandoning cash almost entirely in favor of “tap and go” transactions and have finally embraced contactless and digital payment methods after years of reluctance.

Fewer and fewer adults use printed or minted U.S. currency at all any more. About 3 in 10 Americans said they make no purchases with cash in a typical week, up from a quarter in 2015, according to the Pew Research Center.

The U.S. Mint has pleaded with the public to use coins again, but the opportunities to do so are fewer and farther between…

As of January, all subways and buses in New York City enabled riders to tap a contactless bank card or their mobile wallet at turnstiles to pay fares, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which runs America’s largest urban transit network.
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