SmartMetric, Inc. (OTC: SMME): According to a recently released report titled the 2023 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, in May 2023, U.S. consumers made most of their payments with debit cards, credit cards, and cash. With Credit Cards retaining the top level as the preferred consumer payment method.

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Share of payment instrument use for all payments (Graphic: Business Wire)

The report went on to say, “through the 2022 survey, we found that some of the major payment trends that started early in Covid-19 public health emergency have continued into the pandemic’s later stages. Notably, consumers have continued to use credit cards more often and credit cards were the most used payment method in 2022. By contrast, consumers' use of debit cards and cash in 2022 remained consistent with 2020 levels.”

What is interesting in this report is that mobile app payments hardly figure at all as a general consumer payment method. Credit Cards still remain the pre-eminent form of consumer payment.

“The Federal Reserve's payment method report states that credit cards dominate while mobile payment apps hardly figure at all as a consumer payment method," said SmartMetric’s President and CEO, Chaya Hendrick.

Another key takeaway from 2022 payment trends was the leveling-off of mobile app payments. Although consumers rapidly shifted toward online and remote payments in 2020, the average number of mobile app payments has not increased since that time, indicating that consumer use of mobile payment apps may have reached a peak earlier in the pandemic.

“The long heralded demise of the plastic credit and debit card has proven to be a failure with the proof that credit and debit cards are the preferred payment method by far," said Chaya Hendrick.

“The SmartMetric biometric fingerprint activated credit card brings ultimate security to the most used payment method, cards," said SmartMetric.

SmartMetric is the first truly biometric credit card having its own internal rechargeable battery that allows the card to operate at all card readers including ATMs and gas pumps.

The SmartMetric GEN4 biometric credit card uniquely has an internal hardware system that detects if the finger being used is in fact a real live finger. No live finger confirmation, no card use activation, according to SmartMetric.

The SmartMetric biometric credit card is the only advanced biometric payments card product with an internal rechargeable battery that allows the card to be used in all card usage cases such as restaurants and ATMs. Having its own power inside the card allows the SmartMetric biometric card to work prior to the card being inserted into a card reader.

The SmartMetric biometric fingerprint recognition technology built inside of the credit and debit card uses embedded biometric technology built by SmartMetric to positively recognize the card holder and then, only after a positive fingerprint recognition, turn on the card's EMV contact and contactless payments chip.

According to an article published by Finder.com ¹ the number of credit card accounts open in the United States is 564,500,000. This is an all-time high for the United States.

The average American owns three credit cards. 83% of Americans own at least one credit card. 14% of Americans own at least 10 credit cards.

To view the SmartMetric Biometric Card please follow this link - Video of the SmartMetric Biometric Card. To view the company website: www.smartmetric.com

¹ 2023 Credit card debt and spending statistics in the US | finder.com

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