SAN DIEGO — Long before ATMs, Venmo, Apple Pay and PayPal, checks were king of purchasing, but who still writes checks?
Just 20 years ago, most Americans did not go anywhere without their trusted checkbooks.
With so many people swiping, chipping and apping their money, personal checks, no doubt, are a dwindling for of payment.
But is it really in danger of going extinct?
According to a 2017 Federal Reserve Payments study, check payments dropped by half – from around 40 billion in 2000 to less than 20 billion in 2012.
In recent years, that trend has slowed to less than one percent annually. In other words, the personal check is hanging on.
If you think millennials may signal the end of the personal check era, you may be wrong. A recent study showed 42% still use them.
Another reason the paper check is sticking around? When it comes to adults in America, around 11% do not use the internet at all – not even on their phone or anywhere else.