Applications such as iZettle help make cash unnecessary
While
our grandparents still remember going shopping without a credit card,
future generations will maybe never hold coins in their hands. A
development in this direction is taking place in Sweden. The percentage
of payments by cash has reduced from 40% (2010) to 15% (2016) within six
years and a continuing trend is expected. Two thirds of the Swedes
could imagine going completely cashfree according to a study of the
central bank. The application iZettle and Swish as well as contactless
credit cards are now part of everyday life in the Scandinavian country.
iZettle is a Stockholm start-up that connects a smartphone with a terminal for paying by credit card. Possibilities like these are welcomed not necessarily by sellers, but also small shops that can adapt to the consumers who often have less and less cash on them. There are many other advantages, for example, it will get easier to create a balance sheet, to prevent fake banknotes from being used and to reduce the cost of transporting cash, to name but a few.
Other applications such as Swish allow the transfer of money without any real purchase. 3,7 million of the 9,8 million habitants of Sweden have already downloaded it. Giving money to friends, donating to churches, or even buying the journal "Stockholm Situation" from homeless people is now all possible thanks to this innovation.
So why are some people against a cash-free living?
The organization PRO, the Swedish National Pensioners' Organization, is one of the opponents against this movement. Recently, they took legal steps against the government of the southern city Jönköping. The goal is to protect citizens from the interdiction of cash in public institutions. The government has already established a law that allows enterprises to refuse paying by cash. In some public transport people are obliged to use prepaid cards or the application of the bus company to pay.
Furthermore, the Bank of Sweden mentioned another important point in this debate regarding the case of an enemy attack or breakdown of the computer system where life would stand still. Sweden would be more vulnerable in giving up cash completely as it doesn't have any alternative.
People joined together for the initiative “kontantuppropet”, the revolt of cash, to take a stand and have shown the risks of this movement. They are afraid that some people may not be able to use the new technology because of their age or wealth. Another critical argument is the poor infrastructure in the countryside. Without access for everyone this change doesn't make sense, especially in the model social economic market of Sweden. The government must make more effort before we can imagine "the world’s first cashless society”.
iZettle is a Stockholm start-up that connects a smartphone with a terminal for paying by credit card. Possibilities like these are welcomed not necessarily by sellers, but also small shops that can adapt to the consumers who often have less and less cash on them. There are many other advantages, for example, it will get easier to create a balance sheet, to prevent fake banknotes from being used and to reduce the cost of transporting cash, to name but a few.
Other applications such as Swish allow the transfer of money without any real purchase. 3,7 million of the 9,8 million habitants of Sweden have already downloaded it. Giving money to friends, donating to churches, or even buying the journal "Stockholm Situation" from homeless people is now all possible thanks to this innovation.
So why are some people against a cash-free living?
The organization PRO, the Swedish National Pensioners' Organization, is one of the opponents against this movement. Recently, they took legal steps against the government of the southern city Jönköping. The goal is to protect citizens from the interdiction of cash in public institutions. The government has already established a law that allows enterprises to refuse paying by cash. In some public transport people are obliged to use prepaid cards or the application of the bus company to pay.
Furthermore, the Bank of Sweden mentioned another important point in this debate regarding the case of an enemy attack or breakdown of the computer system where life would stand still. Sweden would be more vulnerable in giving up cash completely as it doesn't have any alternative.
People joined together for the initiative “kontantuppropet”, the revolt of cash, to take a stand and have shown the risks of this movement. They are afraid that some people may not be able to use the new technology because of their age or wealth. Another critical argument is the poor infrastructure in the countryside. Without access for everyone this change doesn't make sense, especially in the model social economic market of Sweden. The government must make more effort before we can imagine "the world’s first cashless society”.
Tale Nina Meier
Sources:
https://www.letemps.ch/economie/2017/09/29/suede-un-pays-cash
http://www.france24.com/fr/20151016-suede-danemark-premiers-pays-argent-liquide-monnaieelectronique-carte-debit
http://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2016/04/25/la-suede-pays-presque-sans-pieces-nibillets_4908032_3234.html
http://www.liberation.fr/futurs/2016/01/01/en-suede-les-especes-en-voie-de-disparition_1423903
https://www.credit-suisse.com/corporate/fr/articles/news-and-expertise/sweden-we-dont-acceptcash-201503.html
