Digital payments seem to be in the rise lately. More people are abandoning paper money (cash) in favor of credit/debit cards, and even crypto. Paying with cash is a rarity these days. Especially where I live. I'm beginning to wonder if cash is still King. Countries worldwide are already planning to launch CBDCs of their own. So cash's days are numbered. Am I right?
Feel free to share your thoughts. Thanks.
Feel free to share your thoughts. Thanks.
You are differentiating between cash as a payment method and fiat in general right? Talking about cash, it's going down a lot I think for so many reasons. The days are numbered when restaurants and hairdressers and butchers didn't take cards. Everyone takes cards, everyone takes Google Pay or Apple Pay and when you purchase something online, there is Amazon with their own payment methods or PayPal. The reasons to carry cash with you decreased tremendously and payment providers like Visa and Mastercard or pushing for that development through lobbying because they take huge cuts in relative terms from every purchase made.
Then there are laws limiting larger cash purchase, in some countries bigger bank notes are ruled out, and many other reasons why the cash payment volume is going down. I think for most consumers it is about ease of use as well.
This is by the way not meant to say that I am positive about it. I am not and I still do carry some cash in some circumstances, but it's certainly become less over the last 15 years with every year passing by.