Inrupt Debuts Data Wallet as Digital Wallet Use Grows

Enterprise software firm Inrupt has introduced a digital wallet designed to hold user data.

Businesses and governments, the company wrote on its blog Tuesday (July 23), can use the technology to give customers and citizens a place to store their data.

“Over 60% of the world’s population is expected to use digital wallets regularly by 2026, and over half of consumers report interest in using them for a broader range of purposes,” the company said. “But the existing market has focused largely on financial transactions and is dominated by a handful of Big Tech vendors.”

The Data Wallet, Inrupt said, differs from alternatives by accepting a range of different data, and makes it easy for users to consent to access to their data. The company argued that the Data Wallet creates opportunities for organizations as the web pivots toward a “user-centric approach” to sharing, using and managing personal data.

“Browsers shaped the Web 1.0 era, and Web 2.0 was all about apps. But Web 3.0 is all about empowered individuals and personal data,” said Sir Tim Berners-Lee, co-founder of Inrupt and esteemed computer scientist.

(Berners-Lee is widely credited for inventing the World Wide Web, the first web browser, and the building blocks that allowed the internet to scale.)

“The Data Wallet becomes a fundamental tool for users,” he added. “By making this key piece of technology available, Inrupt is ensuring that the opportunities and benefits of secure personal Data Wallets are open for everyone.”

Inrupt’s argument that consumers are using digital wallets for more than just payments is backed up by PYMNTS Intelligence research, with the convenience of always having them at the ready providing a major factor in wider adoption.

Findings from the PYMNTS Intelligence/Google Wallet study “Digital Wallets Beyond Financial Transactions: A Global Perspective” show that a third of consumers say that always having a digital wallet with them increases their likelihood of using its access and verification capabilities in the future — a larger share than said the same of any other digital wallet advantage.

Meanwhile, 30% of consumers said the fact that these features come at no or low cost raises their likelihood of using them, while a similar share said the same of the high security for their money that digital wallets offer.

But even with this convenience, there remains a segment of doubtful consumers who are unlikely to be convinced to adopt these features.

“Despite the overall interest, the more challenging audience of skeptics will be tough to persuade, as nearly half say nothing could convince them to use a consolidated digital wallet under any circumstance,” the study noted.