Ministers are under pressure to set-up bank accounts for the estimated 1.2 million people who do not have one during the coronavirus outbreak.
Contactless card payments are increasing during the Covid-19 pandemic because shoppers do not have to hand over used cash. The transaction limit is being lifted from £30 to £45 to limit customers' exposure to other people.
But people who do not have bank accounts cannot use the system. Acting Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey said: “Over a million of our fellow citizens find themselves without access to a basic bank account in a crisis where electronic cash is king. “As we all try to minimise our exposure to the virus by using contactless payments, these people find themselves not just financially