‘Cash is king’, the old saying goes, but it seems that the world is beginning to grow out of royalty both figuratively and literally. While it has acted as a useful tool in our trading of both resources and skills, it seems to have also had some detrimental effects on society as a whole. The most recent of course being that cash acted as a way for the coronavirus to spread.
While the idea of a cashless society may scare some people, most of us know that it is an inevitability with our current trajectory. Those of you on the fence about whether cashless is better or worse may benefit from learning about the types of payment platform that will replace cash. These apps exist in all kinds of different forms already, but as cash is still in circulation it may be hard to realize their full potential.
The Dark Side of Cash
Since it’s inception, cash has always been a powerful thing, replacing the need to carry around produce or other goods to trade. It allows us to sell our goods and services in exchange for tokens which can be used to buy other goods and services.
Although it only retains its value as long as both parties are in agreement that it even has value, and it’s within the speculative nature of cash and it’s worth against other currencies that we start to see it’s failures.
Counterfeit
Counterfeit money has likely been around since shortly after the invention of money, as people have always tried to work around such rigid systems. Nowadays it’s harder than ever to counterfeit money, yet people still fall for it all the time around the globe.
Counterfeit money hurts more than just centralized banking systems, it also hurts individuals who may have been handed such a note in the change of a transaction.
Easily Stolen
The most stolen items in the world are pens and lighters (well done, Bic), but shortly after that one can imagine cash to be a commonly stolen good. In fact a quick search on YouTube will reveal just how modern pickpockets can take cash off your person without you noticing.
Easily Lost
Probably as often as it’s stolen, cash is lost. It would be hard to determine just how much cash has been lost around the world, especially since much of it would’ve been found shortly after.
Although if you’ve ever had cash on your person, then you’ll know just how easy it is to misplace it, or the containers we use to keep it in (wallets/purses/phone cases/etc).
Unhygienic
A point briefly touched on in the introduction to this article, cash is remarkably unclean, and has been found to carry viruses, protozoa, bacteria, and can often be found to have traces of drugs.
During the pandemic we saw media outlets advising people to be more cautious about using and receiving cash, as it could be contaminated with the coronavirus. While we now know that the risk is low, it’s an important reminder that one should always be mindful when handling cash.
Alternatives to Cash
So what’s next after cash? Will we return to an egalitarian society where an agreed amount of beans is worth an agreed amount of potatoes? Probably not, instead we will see a proliferation in payment platform apps which allow users to use their phone or a debit or credit card instead.
Benefits to the Consumer
The benefits to the consumer, other than not having to deal with the above problems with cash, can also come in other forms. While cash is still relatively ubiquitous, most people are paid directly into their bank accounts and need to visit an ATM or bank to withdraw it.
By using a payment platform instead you can save yourself both the time and money required to get to the ATM to get cash out.
These apps generally also come loaded with other great features, such as:
- Cryptocurrency wallets alongside bank accounts
- Easy peer-to-peer transfer often with cross border remittance support
- Lower fees than commercial banks
Worried About Going Cashless?
It’s not uncommon to feel uneasy about going cashless, especially if you were cognitive in 1999 when the world thought that computers wouldn’t join us in the following millennium. The most common concern with cash is it suddenly losing all intrinsic value, which seems incredibly unlikely with every note backed by reserve banks and treasuries.
Regardless, if you are concerned about your wealth losing value you could consider investing in a tangible commodity such as gold or silver. Once upon a time the value of money was dependent on the Gold Standard, and the value of gold went beyond it’s financial uses.