BOCA RATON, Fla. (January 24, 2019) – ViViPAY (ViVi), a subsidiary of ViVi Holdings Inc. and a leading provider of “Fintech” financial technology solutions, announced today results of a survey it commissioned addressing how members of the unbanked population receive income as well as check cashing trends.

According to Pew Research, fewer people are utilizing the use of cash and checks. The center recently reported that almost 30% of adults make zero purchases with cash in a typical week – up from 24% in 2015. However, the unbanked population, with no access to traditional financial services, remain heavily reliant on cashing paychecks to live in a mostly-cash society.

The online survey was taken by roughly 250 unbanked individuals in early January 2018, and the results show that 41.8% of individuals receive their income by paper check or money order. More than half, 58.3% cash their checks at a check cashing store, and 31.3% cash their checks at a supermarket or local store with check cashing services.

More than half (53%) spend between $20 and $40 when cashing a check, and some individuals reported spending nearly $100 on check cashing services. If an average of five checks are cashed in a given month, that number could total $500 or higher for the average unbanked individual who relies on check cashing for access to funds.

Pew also reported that 46% of Americans aren’t concerned with having cash on hand because there are other methods of payment. Keeping cash on hand just in case is something about 53 percent try to do, which is down from 60 percent in 2015.

Stephen Harkey, Chief Marketing Officer at ViVi stated, “ViVi is building a financial FinTech ecosystem that will offer similar financial freedoms to the unbanked. Furthermore, Marco Scabia, Global President of ViViPAY added, “We’re going to offer virtual bank-like services without the need for a traditional bank account, so people can make online purchases, as well as transfer money, pay bills, and deposit money, all tied to a ViVi Mastercard or Visa.”

About ViVi Holdings

ViViPAY “ViVi” is a subsidiary of ViVi Holdings, a U.S.-based "Fintech" financial technology company that has developed a complete ecosystem of financial solutions and is committed to the digital inclusion of basic banking services for the entire population. It aggregates the branches of technology, telecommunications and payment processing in one cohesive, intuitive platform that uses "AI" Artificial Intelligence and Private Blockchain technology to guarantee security.