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Barclays has developed a wristband that will allow wearers to pay for a morning coffee as well as their daily commute.

Wearers swipe the bands, which can be worn 24 hours a day, over a terminal at a shop or pay point on the bus or station platform to make a purchase.

The bPay bands are part of a wider revolution in wearable technology, which will allow people to negotiate daily life without using cash.

Wearers swipe the bands, which can be worn 24 hours a day, over a terminal at a shop or pay point on the bus or station platform to make a purchase of they can be used as here to get access to a gig

All the major tech giants, such as Apple and Samsung, have developed or are working on smart watches, which will have a range of functions, from monitoring heart rate to giving directions.

Significantly, they are also expected to become virtual wallets that allow people to negotiate their day without the need for money or cards.

The bPay bands are effectively loaded with money by users from their bank accounts which can then be spent on small purchases up to a single transaction value of £20 by swiping them over a terminal.

They can also replace conventional plastic cards by allowing people to make purchases much more quickly than normal because users do not need to use a four digit PIN.

The rubberised and waterproof bands, which contain a computer chip and micro-aerial to communicate with terminals, have the security benefit that they are less likely to be lost or stolen than a wallet or purse.

The bPay bands have been trialled to the public at public events such as the British Summer Time Music Festival and London Pride, where they can be used to gain entry and buy food and drink.

However, they are now moving into the mainstream so that they can be used at any one of around 300,000 till terminals – many in coffee shops and newsagents - that already work with contactless debit cards.

The bPay bands have been trialled to the public at public events such as the British Summer Time Music Festival and London Pride, where they can be used to gain entry and buy food and drink

It will be possible to pay for journeys on all buses, tubes and trains inside London by swiping them across terminals from later this year. Other towns and cities are expected to follow suit.

A Barclays spokesman said: 'Just imagine a typical day in the near future. You leave the house, hop on the train and head to the gym. After your workout, you grab a coffee and go to the office. The money or information you need for every stage of that journey will be integrated into a single device like bPay band – from your travel card to your gym membership to the money for your coffee and lunch.

'It's a time that isn't quite here yet, but it's not far away. Innovations like bPay band are bringing it closer every day.' 

Barclays introduced the first credit card in the UK, the Barclaycard in 1966, while the company then released the first contactless debit cards, which allow payments via swiping at terminals rather than PIN numbers, in 2007.

As the country's biggest credit card provider with more than 10 million accounts it is in a particularly powerful position to change the way people spend their money.

Barclaycard chief executive, Valerie Soranno Keating, said it is working with Transport for London, retailers and consumers to win acceptance of the technology.

'We're the only financial institution in the UK that has both sides of the equation; we can actually create the tipping point,' she said.

Contactless: Barclaycard chief executive, Valerie Soranno Keating, said that the company is working with Transport for London, retailers and consumers to win acceptance of the technology

The technology that works with contactless cards and wrist bands can also be built into other products such as mobile phones, key fobs and rings.

The banking industry is keen for people to switch away from using cash because it is much more expensive for them to handle, transport and count real money than virtual electronic payments.

Consequently, the quicker they can convert people to new forms of payment the more money they can save.

The net result of these efforts is that cash is expected to account for less than half of transactions for the first time this year, after falling to 53 per cent in 2013.

There is an added benefit for the banks because they charge a small fee to retailers every time a transaction is made – a bill that will inevitably end up at the door of consumers.