Day 4 — How Canadians Pay: 20 Years of Credit-Card Evolution Credit cards are quietly reshaping how Canadians spend, borrow, and build loyalty. Over the last two decades, five major trends have defined the country’s payment landscape: 1. Contactless & Mobile Payments 2. Rewards & Co-branded Cards 3. Market Share Concentration 4. Fintech Disruption 5. Regulation & Policy Shifts Here’s what’s changed — and why it matters. Contactless & Digital Wallets Remember when you had to insert your chip and wait? In 2015, only ~40% of Canadians used contactless payments regularly. By 2024, that number is over 90% . Nearly every in-store transaction — and two-thirds of online purchases — now runs through cards. [1] Mobile wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay accelerated this shift, merging convenience with data-rich, loyalty-driven ecosystems. Insight: Payment friction is gone. The new competition isn’t about acceptance — it’s about data, personalization, a...