Kiosk Solutions Feb-Mar 2019 | Page 40

opinion Another surprising statistic ECB found is that almost 80% of millennials’ transactions are done in cash, which is higher than the European average of 78.8% the opposite? A wealth of reasons could be provided to answer why, but three factors ultimately played a central role: 1. The Financial Crisis 2. Student Loans/Debt 3. Lifestyle & Spending Habits Millennials lived through the financial crisis of 2008 and witnessed the effects of out of control debt. Most of the older 40 KIOSK solutions portion of the group recently graduated or were set to graduate into an economy with low job availability and were already burdened with student loan debt. According to Federal Reserve and Student Loan Hero, the current total student loan amount in the US is $1.4 Trillion spread out among 44 million of American student loans, which means that every borrower has to pay $351 every month. Millennials were faced with the decision to remain debt-conscious in their spending habits while seeking employment or going back to school and increasing their student loan debt. Coupled with these experiences, many understood lifestyle changes would need to be made and spending habits would need to be adjusted. By having fewer credit cards and more cash on hand, it’s easier to only spend the cash available, instead of relying on credit to make purchases.