When did you last use cash? This is a question which many of us are asking ourselves as society moves towards using contactless methods of payment which are quicker and more convenient than using coins and banknotes.

The pandemic has accelerated this phenomenon as global retailers favor the use of contactless payments to help minimize the spread of the virus on contaminated cash.

The facts speak for themselves with the UK seeing a 35% reduction in cash payments in 2020 with five out of six now being cashless. This type of scenario is being replicated in major economies across the globe and predictions are that cashless payments will continue to increase in the future with cash only being used for minor expenditure and a few coin operated vending machines and parking meters.

Life at sea tends to reflect life ashore and seafarers want to be able to have the flexibility of managing their money while onboard in just the same way as they can when on leave.

ShipMoney really listens to its clients’ needs resulting in the  development of its proprietary maritime digital payment platform which offers a range of services for maritime companies to facilitate crew wages, international corporate remittances,  money transfers and all other forms of shoreside and onboard payments.

It also transforms the way cross border FX payments are paid, offering significant cost savings and administrative efficiencies.

ShipMoney’s crew payments service reduces cash-to-master and wire costs allowing seafarers to access and receive their wages in real-time, anywhere in the world. Crew can transfer money, schedule payments and use their ShipMoney card for online purchases or make contactless payments when ashore while also benefitting from favorable exchange rates.

Recognizing seafarers’ unique set of circumstances, particularly with regards to the disruption of goods deliveries onboard during the pandemic, ShipMoney also developed a virtual card using Visa’s virtual card technology.

The virtual card has the same functionality as a physical ShipMoney card, allowing seafarers to send money, initiate mobile top-ups and card-to-card transfers, as well as shop online.

Shipping companies have also discovered that ShipMoney’s corporate payments solution reduces their international wire and foreign exchange costs by allowing them to digitally pay vendors, suppliers and agencies. It can also considerably reduce their administration burden.

The company recognizes the unique set of circumstances facing the shipping industry particularly relating to seafarer mental health and wellbeing so has developed a tailored set of solutions to relieve the stress of money management with a tried and tested set of services that brings real efficiencies and cost savings to both ship operators and their crews.