E2 Poll: New Payments in Your Plans

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Cash. Personal checks. Credit cards. That defined the options that most in the Western World used to pay for goods and services for 50 years (OK, with traveler's checks and money orders thrown in for special purposes). But we're now seeing an explosion of payment options available for consumers. Many see this as a boon to both vendors and customers, but regulators and watchdog agencies are taking a close look at new payment options to insure that customers (and vendors) don't fall prey to exciting new forms of crime and corruption.

If we look back at the last year, we see that changes in the fees banks are allowed to charge for some types of credit card transactions are pushing institutions to allow other, less-heavily regulated forms of payment. At the same time, many customers who might not be able (or willing) to qualify for a traditional credit card or bank checking account are now able to take part in non-cash transactions through systems such as American Express's Bluebird -- a "non-bank bank" system that can involve a pre-paid chip-and-pin card, smartphone e-wallet, or online transactions.

In the face of all this change, we decided that it's a good time to ask the E2 community an important question: What new forms of payment is your organization planning to accept in 2013? Of course, it's possible that you already accept every form of payment ever considered, but if you don't, are you planning to do anything new this year? Take the new E2 poll, and let us know your thoughts on the matter. Beyond the numbers, we're interested in which of the new forms of payment you think hold the most promise and which might be "flashes in the pan"; interesting experiments that will fade in a short time.

The question isn't whether the options are going to increase: It's really which options will gain transaction most quickly and how government regulators and financial institutions will cope with the challenges posed by new technologies and systems. What's your take? Are we entering a brave new world of payment options, or will the risks outweigh the advantages and send us back to the "old reliables" that have served for half a century? Let us know -- and let the discussion begin.