Posted 16 hours ago16 hr comment_13485 The Fast Company Impact Council is an invitation-only membership community of leaders, experts, executives, and entrepreneurs who share their insights with our audience. Members pay annual dues for access to peer learning, thought leadership opportunities, events and more. Digital wallets have fast become part of daily life. By 2027, they’re expected to account for half of all retail sales—around $25 trillion worldwide. It’s easy to see why. Paying with a digital wallet is easy, secure, and requires nothing more than a phone. But there’s potential for wallets to do so much more, beyond payments. Digital wallets started as payment tools. Now, they’re becoming platforms for everything: verifying identity, storing loyalty cards, presenting boarding passes and rail tickets, accessing insurance documents, and roadside assistance memberships. This isn’t just convenience—it’s intelligence in your pocket. In China, super apps like WeChat let people manage investments, book rideshares, order food, schedule medical appointments, access government services, and engage with social networks. It’s meeting a growing demand for more personalized digital experiences. It’s me, always Identity is no longer a card in your wallet—it is your wallet. As governments around the world implement digital passports and driver’s licenses, they will be held in digital wallets. In Belgium, more than 80% of those over 16 use itsme for secure identification, digital transactions, and electronic signatures, with millions of actions performed daily. Another example—the EU Digital Identity Wallet—is expected to launch for all EU citizens, residents, and businesses by 2026. It will store users’ documentation so they can securely access public and private online services across member states. Given its focus on cross-border interactions, the EU program could be a precursor to a standardized global ID framework. A wealth of management Today, innovative companies are developing wallets into financial hubs that manage investments, loans, and cryptocurrencies. Revolut, for example, started as a currency exchange wallet and expanded into banking, trading, insurance, and wealth management. This year, the company plans to introduce one-day mortgage approvals and AI-powered assistants that provide personalized financial insights and recommendations. The convergence of AI, blockchain, and fintech is pushing wallets’ boundaries. Apps such as Trim, for example, function as AI-driven financial assistants that help users negotiate bills, cancel unwanted subscriptions, and automate savings. Argent, an Ethereum-based smart contract wallet, allows users to securely store, manage, and invest in cryptocurrencies. Think: less banking app, more autonomous CFO. In a few years, wallets could be semi-autonomous financial agents that analyze a user’s real-time cash flow, optimize investments, and negotiate loan rates with minimal human input. They may execute smart contracts for renting homes, leasing vehicles, or securing gig work, eliminating the need for traditional intermediaries. With integrated finance capabilities enabled by open banking, they could lend, borrow, and trade assets, adapting to market conditions as they change. “Just A Rather Very Intelligent System” Consider the number of apps we have on our phones, and the amount of time we spend logging in to various platforms and hopping between tasks. Imagine the digital wallet as a personal assistant that steps in for us—helping to manage shopping, banking, healthcare, and prescriptions, for example, or scheduling travel and rebooking flights when delays occur. It might not be JARVIS the AI butler from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but certainly it is a useful and intelligent assistant. These assistants could make decisions on your behalf via agentic AI models. They have the potential to automatically calculate tax returns, pay utility bills, switch providers, order groceries based on household consumption patterns, share medical histories with healthcare professionals, and recommend spontaneous trips based on weather and work schedules. Imagine your wallet negotiating a mortgage rate at 3 a.m. while you sleep. Know your agent Considering the level of agency we may grant to these assistants, it is essential to ensure that they are secure and transparent. A statistic from the World Economic Forum suggests that only a minority of organizations currently have a process in place to assess the security of AI tools before deploying them. Know your agent protocols are in the ascendant, and rightly so. Regulatory and governance frameworks must enforce standards and require that AI models are auditable and free from bias. Solution developers must prioritize user control—enabling individuals to set privacy preferences, verify AI-driven decisions, and override automated actions. In the future, the smartest thing in your pocket might not be your phone—it’ll be the agent inside it. This is emerging territory, so businesses and governments should work together to develop open, secure, and ethical innovations. If done right, the digital wallet won’t just carry your money—it will carry your life. And it’ll do it with your permission, your priorities, and your protection in mind. Ken Moore is the chief innovation officer at Mastercard. View the full article
