Cashless Economy
One of Asia’s Largest Cryptocurrency Exchange Hacked What Really Lies Behind Sweden's Cashless Crusade A New Bill in Washington D.C. Would Bar Local Restaurants From Refusing Cash Going Cashless Can Be Dangerous, Malaysian President of the Consumers Association Warns In Germany, the cashless economy raises concerns about trust and privacy Sweden’s central bank governor calls for public control over its payment system Cashless society: from Sweden to India, some might get left behind A growing risk of banking disaster in a cashless economy Sweden: citizen rebelling against a cashless economy
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We must halt the relentless march to a cashless society.





We must halt the relentless march to a cashless society.
Jack Welch, the US business executive, once famously said that "cash is king". Yet his words now sound increasingly outdated. Cash no longer reigns supreme but has been kicked off the throne by virtual commerce. We are living through an online revolution, one that could eventually mean the disappearance of notes and coins.

In 2017 debit card payments, fuelled by contactless technology, overtook cash payments in Britain for the first time. Several transport providers, retailers and even restaurants now refuse cash. To its starry-eyed enthusiasts, the advent of the cashless society represents an exciting new world of speed and convenience.
  But that is just a delusion.
In reality, the demise of traditional money will make life more expensive, undermine our essential consumer rights, and erode our independence by putting us at the mercy of corporate giants.

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Go Further

Central bankers fear chaos in a cashless society - 05/06/2019

A cashless society wouldn't work in the US - 04/23/2019

Andrea Nitsche from Cash Matters, says: “Going cashless is not a choice consumers make, it’s a choice made for them by market players." - 04/04/2019

Cybercrimes and security in a cashless society by Dr Muzaffar Syah Mallow - 03/15/2019

Tax evasion and crime: the truth about cash - 01/14/2019

Reserve Bank of Australia governor Dr Philip Lowe: "As we rely less on cash, outages affecting retail transactions can have a significant impact on businesses and individuals." - 11/30/2018

The cashless dystopia : "With implantable chips, we are becoming hackable and trackable devices." - 11/30/2018

Malcolm McDowell, Director on the Board of the International Currency Association : "The most powerful form of reinforcing a ‘save first, buy later’ mentality is to use cash." - 11/20/2018

"For decades, anti-cash campaigns led by dominant card brands, have been waged with the objective of discrediting cash" according to the ATM Industry Association - 11/16/2018

Andy Hoffman, analyst : "In India, the "cashless society" decree changed the life of the masses for the worse." - 11/12/2018

"If cash stopped working, it would leave all individuals to rely on the private sector for access to money and payment methods." says Swedish economist Cecilia Skingsley - 11/12/2018

Bitcoin causes global warming according to researchers at the University of Hawaii - 11/01/2018

The Bank of Canada warns against an increased dependence on retail payment networks. - 10/23/2018

Dr Rakesh Goyal (PhD in cyber security): "The risks associated with the move towards a cashless society are no longer hypothetical." - 10/10/2018

The drive towards a cashless society doesn't appear to be a smart move - 09/10/2018

The challenges of transitioning to a cashless society - 09/08/2018

A cashless society: central bankers warn of the risks involved - 08/14/2018

Going Cashless Can Be Dangerous, Malaysian President of the Consumers Association Warns - 07/10/2018

Sweden’s central bank governor calls for public control over its payment system - 06/04/2018

The former President of Interpol discusses the risks of going cashless - 06/04/2018

CTO of Paypal says Cash still matters and will not go anywhere anytime soon - 05/30/2018

Banking Security

Cyber theft - A serious concern in cashless India

"In 2018, over a third of the world’s consumers experienced debit or credit card fraud,” says Justin Hansen, security architect at Venafi.

Cybercrime: the invisible theft in the cashless economy

British Retailer Dixons Carphone Faces a Major Breach That Affects Nearly Six Million Bank Cards

Have your say

Who would be in control of the currency in a cashless society?

Who would be in control of the currency in a cashless society?
In many ways, recovery from the crisis has become possible due to prudent policies of central banks and states, which included instruments such as adjusting base interest rates and quantitative easing. However, the key role here was played by the very possibility of control over the system. In the...

Why a cashless economy is simply the privatization of digital payments

Why a cashless economy is simply the privatization of digital payments
The share of digital payments is steadily growing. Capgemini and BNP Paribas expect people around the world to make 726 billion transactions using digital payment technologies by 2020. "Non-cash payments have increased in volume due to the rise in adoption of digital payment services across all...

What is the social utility of cash ?

What is the social utility of cash ?
Some say a man is only worth the sum of his possessions; should we produce bank statements, instead of identification, when stopped by the police? But what if the money in our pockets were more than just a financial instrument used to acquire goods? What if banknotes were the first societal link...
Academic Research

Ecology: The Carbon Footprint of the New Means of Payment

Children, education and the ethical issue in a cashless society

John Howland Cochrane, economist and professor at Berkeley: "The ability to transact with anonymity and privacy has been a central freedom for hundreds of years."

The cashless society from an ethical point of view

The debate about the move towards a cashless society has been at the center of the scene for several years, now. Various angles have been taken by economists, politicians, banking institutions and sociologists. Beyond the technicalities of the debate, lies the question of freedom, of inter-citizen solidarity and of governmental responsibility. The debate cannot remain in the hands of financial specialists, it is first and foremost an ethical, political and societal issue.

The cashless society from an ethical point of view

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The debate

What are the pitfalls of a cash-free society ?

What are the pitfalls of a cash-free society ?
Amid the benefits of digital payments – their ease of use, potential to cut costs for businesses...

In a cashless society, Big Brother will always know when you buy milk

In a cashless society, Big Brother will always know when you buy milk
While the move toward a cashless economy indeed poses problems for low-income and marginalized...

Education: how will we teach the value of money without cash?

Education: how will we teach the value of money without cash?
With the increased fear of the dawning cashless world surrounding us, the matter of pedagogical...

Cashless society Vs terrorism: Are States fighting last year’s war again?

Cashless society Vs terrorism: Are States fighting last year’s war again?
The deletion of cash will do little or nothing to tackle terrorist cells, which have an arsenal of...

Inclusion: a cashless economy fights the poorest, not poverty

Inclusion: a cashless economy fights the poorest, not poverty
Payment tools which were, a few decades ago, reserved to the wealthy are now widespread, as banking and financial systems develop throughout the world. According to some, the development of electronic means not only warrants the termination of paper currency but would also enable further financial inclusion for impoverished masses. Yet, financial experts fear the potential backlash of such a theory, as recent examples have shown.

A cashless economy to root out theft and petty crime?

A cashless economy to root out theft and petty crime?
The prospect of making crime disappear has been addressed simultaneously with simply deleting other human woes, such as tax evasion and poverty, namely by economist Ken Rogoff. But just as going cashless would merely add more red tape to being poor, suppressing paper currency would do nothing to stymie crime. In fact, our increasingly cashless society has given birth to new, bigger, stealthier forms of crime.

A cashless economy as a bulwark against fraud and tax evasion?

A cashless economy as a bulwark against fraud and tax evasion?
It was Ken Rogoff’s most controversial theory: economies should ban cash in order to address tax evasion and place every single transaction on their radars. By doing so, the rich would no longer be able to hurdle suitcases packed with bills onto airplanes and fiscal justice would be resumed. But the theory has many holes.

Does a cashless economy really boost economic growth for all?

Does a cashless economy really boost economic growth for all?
Various economists are calling for the strong reduction of cash in order to boost economies and the efficiency levels of central banks. While the arguments make some economic sense, their implementation would come at a high political and democratic price. Must economies be privileged and take the lead on political freedom, at the price of unethical government practices?

Governments and sovereignty concerns in a cashless society

Governments and sovereignty concerns in a cashless society
Central banks are putting up remarkably little resistance in defending the currencies they issue, in the global war on cash. As cash prevalence slowly dwindles, private banks and payment solutions are getting closer to their goals, and central banks take a second-row seat to the show. But the demise of cash would relinquish them to the status of secondary players on the market and do disservice to the peoples they administer.

Why commercial banks are lobbying in favor of a cashless economy

Why commercial banks are lobbying in favor of a cashless economy
Banks are eager to press on towards cashless societies, with increased efficiency and margins in sight. The abolition of cash, however, will generate new hidden costs for the public, and place economies under a high risk, with all eggs in one basket.
The website "Cashless Economy" (cashless-economy.com) is edited by individuals and civil society groups fully committed to defending privacy and civil liberties against abuse and the risks inherent in a cashless society.
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