Photo/Illutration An artist’s rendition of the venue for the 2025 Osaka Kansai Expo (Provided by the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition)

OSAKA--Visitors can leave their money at home as the 2025 Osaka Kansai Expo will be the first to go completely cashless.

All shopping, dining and other activities at the expo must be paid through a dedicated smartphone app or with credit and smart cards, the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition said.

A prepaid card will be issued to those without a smartphone or a credit card.

The organizers, who envision the event as a “laboratory for a future society,” plan to ease congestion at cash registers and eliminate the need to transport currency and stock up on change.

Visitors will download a payment app on their smartphones and add money to it from their bank accounts or credit cards.

The expo is expected to attract 28.2 million visitors during the six months from April 2025.

The organizers hope smooth payments will keep visitors happy and moving speedily through cash registers, particularly during the latter half of the expo when heavy crowds are expected.

The economy ministry plans to raise the ratio of cashless payments in Japan, which stood at 32.5 percent in 2021, to about 40 percent in 2025 and eventually to 80 percent. The ministry and the association hope that the 2025 expo will accelerate the move toward a cashless society.

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