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Physical cash is dying–and you don't need to be a conspiracist to worry

prospectmagazine.co.uk

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Re: Physical cash is dying–and you don't need to be a conspiracist to worry

#51

Post by mylastattempt »

darrenf wrote: post #23
superkuh wrote: post #9

I will always recall the chaos of being in a northern Minnesota tourist town (Ely) when the single fiber-optic line serving the region was cut. I sure was glad our group brought cash. All the people with only third party companies willing to pay for them some time in the future had their trips and plans ruined. But that's sort of a trivial example. It could be much worse. And then there's the rent seeking inherent in…

> Plus cash is just so much more convient and faster. There are many reasons I'm not anti-cash, but I am really struggling to think of a single example of this specific statement being true. Just acquiring cash at all means I have to take time out of my day, repeatedly, to make withdrawals. Then I have to carry it securely ( as well as the cards I need to get hold of more), which is annoying at the best of times and…

I have to agree with this. Stating that cash is more convenient is just false. It might be more familiar to some, or more culturally accepted, but saying it's more convenient than just touching the machine with your card or phone - outright false.

That's all completely separate from the fact that cashless payments shift immensely shifts the power balance and takes away all of your payment privacy - irreversibly.

Re: Physical cash is dying–and you don't need to be a conspiracist to worry

#52

Post by charcircuit »

rwmj wrote: post #30
charcircuit wrote: post #14

It's strange that governments are not minting more digital currency if the demand for physical currency is falling.

Because it doesn't solve any problem that anyone has? Bank transfers and card payments are easy, fast and already widespread, at least everywhere except for the US.

Is printing tons of physical money solving problems people actually have either or is it just increasing costs from having to manufacture, transport, secure, etc physical money.

Re: Physical cash is dying–and you don't need to be a conspiracist to worry

#53

Post by ghaff »

rwmj wrote: post #26
ghaff wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I use very little cash in MA. But checks are still pretty much the default for a lot of people doing various services for me. I can just leave a check for someone like my housekeeper. I could presumably make arrangements to pay in a different form (including cash) but why bother? And, in many cases, it's my bank actually "writing" the check and delivering it. I'd change if it became an aberration or weird to do but i…

That's wild. Here in the UK, tradespeople usually have a card reader, or some accept bank transfers.

It's becoming more common but for someone like my housekeeper, I may not even be home and can just leave a check on the counter. As I say, I could doubtless make alternative arrangements but a check is the default and it's easy.

Re: Physical cash is dying–and you don't need to be a conspiracist to worry

#54

Post by ACow_Adonis »

Philpax wrote: post #32
madsbuch wrote: post #11

I Denmark we are removing the 1000kr bill as of May 2025. from then on the highest bill. is 500kr which is roughly equal to 80 usd. Denmark Is the most cashless society I have yet experiences (and I have been traveling a fair bit). This comes with pros and cons. and I think the reason why it works is because of an incredibly high social trust.

I moved to Sweden ~2.5 years ago and I can count the number of times I've used cash on one hand. It's definitely less private, but the convenience is unmatched. Honestly, I don't even know what the modern Swedish notes look like now!

Lol, I actually experienced something similar in Australia recently trying to sell second hand goods.

Of course I asked for payment in cash, which the buyers duelly provided.

But it occurred to me as I observed the new $50 notes in my hand, which were of a new design that I'd never seen before that it had actually been so long since i'd handled physical currency that I wasn't really sure whether the notes in my hand were legitimate designs or not.

Re: Physical cash is dying–and you don't need to be a conspiracist to worry

#55

Post by ta1243 »

gambiting wrote: post #20
jason-phillips wrote: post #2

I live an hour or so outside of Austin and people still primarily write checks as that's the only acceptable payment method, along with cash. My new wife said, "Wait, why not just use Stripe? I'll tell them." I had to explain to her that one does not simply pull forward a society thirty years into the future. There is an incredible amount of cultural inertia to overcome. So I carry a lot of cash out here.

Aren't cheques even worse for privacy though? Not only your bank knows exactly who you paid and how much, the seller also now has your actual name since it's just written on the cheque - at least when paying by card they get nothing. Maybe I'm getting it wrong - cheques are something I've only seen in films, in my country no bank accepts them since 2020 anymore, they've been completely phased out.

I was given a chequebook when I opened my current bank account in 2004, I've written 8, all of them in the first 10 years.

Re: Physical cash is dying–and you don't need to be a conspiracist to worry

#56

Post by unicornmama »

berkes wrote: post #25
troupo wrote: post #3

I really really really like cashless payments I really really really dislike that my money can be whisked away at the whim of a cray government or a glitch in the system

I really really really would think that Bitcoin fills this exact need. There's a lot wrong with the cryptocurrency world and with Bitcoin specifically. So much wrong, that I'm afraid we closed the one way out of government and corporate-controlled "digital money" and all the risks that comes with. But maybe it never was a good "way out" in the first place: maybe there never was a way out at all. I keep hoping the gri…

This is preposterous. Bitcoin is more traceable, more transparent and more censorship prone than every form of currency conveyance we know of including cash, diamonds, physical gold, etc… The fact that’s 2024 and some people still believe Bitcoin enables privacy just goes to show how crypto enthusiasts are candy brained fanatics.

Re: Physical cash is dying–and you don't need to be a conspiracist to worry

#57

Post by ajmurmann »

glimshe wrote: post #4
jason-phillips wrote: post #2

I live an hour or so outside of Austin and people still primarily write checks as that's the only acceptable payment method, along with cash. My new wife said, "Wait, why not just use Stripe? I'll tell them." I had to explain to her that one does not simply pull forward a society thirty years into the future. There is an incredible amount of cultural inertia to overcome. So I carry a lot of cash out here.

You'd be surprised. I visited South America and all I saw was phone payments... They basically skipped the credit card age, as cards were never popular among the poor.

Aren't the phone payments backed by credit cards or do they by preloaded vouchers?

Re: Physical cash is dying–and you don't need to be a conspiracist to worry

#58

Post by okr »

toenail wrote: post #29

I don't see why I should give a corporation information about all my payments. I already carry a phone with me, that's enough to spy on where I am, they don't need to know what I do or who I do it with. Privacy is a right, not a privilege, I don't see why I should just throw it away for a little convenience.

(Since when is privacy a right? Just curious. I always saw it as a privilege. Having my room with my bed to sleep in.)

Re: Physical cash is dying–and you don't need to be a conspiracist to worry

#59

Post by jasode »

Alifatisk wrote: post #33

I believe once we go fully cashless, we'll regret it and wish we could go back. I can barely enjoy a full day without being required to bring my phone / debit card with me because the register does not accept cash.

>I can barely enjoy a full day without being required to bring my phone / debit card with me because the register does not accept cash.

But how do you get a regular re-supply of your cash to pay the places that take cash?

For me, I would have to make a regular trips to the bank ATM machine to withdraw cash. That type of errand is inconvenient which is why I haven't done that in 15 years. It's been so long that I don't even know what my secret PIN code is to withdraw cash. I pay for everything by credit-card.

I can see where bringing a debit card can be inconvenient but the alternative of ATM withdrawals is inconvenient too (and also vulnerable to physical loss/theft).

Re: Physical cash is dying–and you don't need to be a conspiracist to worry

#60

Post by rwmj »

Our_Benefactors wrote: post #48
Alifatisk wrote: post #33

I believe once we go fully cashless, we'll regret it and wish we could go back. I can barely enjoy a full day without being required to bring my phone / debit card with me because the register does not accept cash.

Currently in China which is pretty much fully cashless and I fucking hate it. Get Alipay. Link your credit card. Put in a pin, but no not that pin because it has two consecutive numbers. Pick a different pin. Forget it by the time you need to pay and reset your pin. Go to the grocery store and have to download a new app to pay, they can’t take Alipay even though it’s the same parent company. Oh the machine didn’t wor…

When I was visiting China in 2019 it was just about still possible to use cash, but it was obvious the way things were going. As a visitor I wasn't able to use any of the available cashless payment methods (no bank account, for a start), so I don't know how visitors and tourists will cope.
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