Cash-2-Card® and a Cashless Economy
In 2020, cash is no longer king.
The trend toward a cashless economy – an economic system where banknotes and coins are no longer used and all transactions are made by credit cards, debit cards, gift cards, mobile wallets and other digital modes – has been growing for years. For many business locations like restaurants, stadiums and event centers – the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the shift more than any other event has.
Due to public health concerns, the pandemic had made a cashless economy seem even more like a logical next step for societies around the world. Retailers and restaurants around the world are favoring digital payment methods over cash primarily to reduce exposure for employees and patrons. Central banks around the world have had to take steps to quarantine and sterilize banknotes – a costly and time-consuming effort. Governments from India to Kenya to Sweden, as well as the United Nations, are promoting cashless payments in the name of public health. Many financial industry analysts are predicting that truly contactless payments through mobile e-wallets may be upon us sooner than previously forecast as consumers and retailers become more accustomed to life without cash.
On a more micro level, small and medium-sized businesses throughout the US are pushing card and contactless payments — as advised by guidelines from the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention — or have switched entirely to online and mobile orders. According to a June report from Square, about, 8% of U.S. sellers were effectively cashless in March, meaning that at least 95% of their sales were made through credit or debit card. That figure jumped to 31% by the end of April and leveled off at 20% in mid-June as cities reopened.
Could the US be a fully cashless country in the near future? It may be coming sooner than we think, and it’s already happened in many other countries throughout the globe.
Cashless countries
Many nations have already made cash absolute. According to Globaldata.com, the top countries currently poised to becomes cashless society leaders this decade are:
Sweden – Sweden has been leading the way as a cashless society in Scandinavia, and many countries near it have followed cashless Sweden. Cashless transactions increased in 2017 when Sweden’s central bank, the Riksbank, announced they were testing out a cashless society with their E-krona pilot program.
Finland
China
South Korea
United Kingdom
Australia
What are the benefits of a cashless economy?
In addition to the public health benefit of reduced germ transmission, the benefits of a cashless economy have already been measured in several countries and regions:
A cashless society saves money and time
Crime is reduced
Production costs of coins and paper currency is reduced
More transactional data to help inform more effective public policy
Increased spending associated with the cashless economy bolsters economic growth
Cashless Society in USA and concerns
While some feel that the government having more data about transactions could be helpful information to developing public policy, many US citizens view traceability more negatively than positively. Many Another concern among those who are wary of a shift toward a cashless economy in the US is fear that all digital transactions give too much power to the government. They fear that going cashless could means fully traceable and fully controlled. Currently, over twenty US cities and states have adopted or are considering cashless retail bans, and at least 10 states may soon follow.
Many of the cashless countries poised to lead the way in the cashless economy are in their position because a high percentage of citizens have bank accounts. One concern among skeptics and opponents of the cashless economy in the US is that those who don’t have bank accounts will be discriminated against. Approximately 6.5% of U.S. households—14.1 million adults and 6.4 million children—are unbanked, according to the FDIC’s 2017 National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households, meaning they live in a household holding no accounts with formal, insured financial institutions.
The role of Cash-2-Card in the US Cashless Economy
Cash-2-Card reverse =ATM technology addresses both of these top concerns about cashless transactions in the American economy. As a provider of customizable cashless solutions for all types of businesses and organizations, Cash-2-Card Reverse =ATM Technology can help businesses enjoy the benefits of being cash-free with ease without discriminating against any cash-paying customers. Customers who wish to pay cash simply insert their cash into the kiosk, and get card they can use at that business, much like a ReverseATM machine.
In this way, Cash-2-Card self-service kiosks can act a bit like cashless vending machines to ensure that cash-paying customers can easily find them and convert their paper currency to card. In regards to surveillance and traceability, the plastic card essentially acts as a gift card that is not monitored through a bank. Customers don’t hace to be concerned about bank/government surveillance and data collection while they enjoy the benefits of quicker, more efficient and safer transaction experiences.
Cash-2-Card self-service kiosks can be installed in retail locations, stores, stadiums, event centers and public plazas. Are cashless stores, cashless schools, more cashless tolls and even a fully cashless world economy coming in the near future? It’s trending that way, any it may be here before we know it.