Decreased Monetary Security
But when your money is in digital form, it's vulnerable to hackers and system malfunctions. Plus, any sort of power outage or network problem can make it impossible for you to retrieve your money. In many ways, cash offers a level of monetary security that a cashless system cannot.
A cashless society would rely on a complex network of digital systems, which would be vulnerable to cyberattacks. If these systems were hacked, it could have a devastating impact on the economy. Privacy is the third challenge raised. Cash can be exchanged anonymously, leaving no digital trail.
Technological Difficulties
If a payment processing system goes down, you cannot accept payments. A cashless business cannot take paper money as an alternative, so its operations will have to stop entirely until the system returns online.
When people are handling less cash, bank robberies, burglaries and corruption drop. Because cash is essentially untraceable, it's a useful tool for criminals, where digital currency is less easy to exploit, and can be shut down quickly if it falls into the wrong hands.
Just: The Bible says absolutely nothing about predicting a cashless society, as some people claim. And in fact, if it did, the closest passage to anything that you could call a “cashless society” is not from the Book of Revelation, but it's from Isaiah, Chapter 55.
Why Eliminate Cash? Cash can be used in criminal activities such as money laundering and tax evasion because it is difficult to trace. Digital transactions or electronic money create an audit trail for law enforcement and financial institutions and can aid governments in economic policymaking.
Customers without bank accounts are excluded
A purely cashless society would leave them at a serious disadvantage and increase economic inequality. Those with minimal access to bank cards or digital banking services would be excluded from the economy.
While cash isn't disappearing entirely, data from Marqeta shows that both consumer attitudes and habits are shifting towards a less cash-dependent economy. According to Marqeta's 2024 State of Payments Report, nearly three-quarters of U.S. consumers aren't concerned about moving towards a cashless society.
Sweden: Sweden leads the world in cashlessness, transitioning away from banknotes. With just 32 ATMs per 100,000 people and over 98% of Swedes owning a debit or credit card, cash usage is dwindling.
One of the biggest issues is the loss of transactional anonymity. In a cashless system, every digital interchange is recorded and stored, making it difficult for individuals to maintain privacy. Unlike cash payments, which are anonymous, digital methods of payment leave a traceable electronic footprint.
Westpac, ANZ, CommBank and NAB have ruled out going cashless, but the banks have shuttered branches across regional Australia, leaving some customers without the option to bank with cash.
According to the FIS Worldpay Global Payments Report, Australia is projected to be 98 per cent cashless by 2024, and cash payments are expected to decline to just 2.1 per cent of in-store purchases. Yet, despite these realities, we're still lagging.
Cash use has been declining for years, but cash isn't close to going away. In 2022, there were a staggering 70 billion cash transactions, making it the third-most-common payment method.
Residents who do not like the fees and risk of fraud from digital transactions have praised the move. However, business owners who have gone cashless say it has helped prevent theft, keep places more sanitary and improve efficiency.
Natural disasters, malicious cyberattacks and simple software failures could bring down electronic payment infrastructure, causing significant disruption to digital and interconnected cashless societies.
For instance, using cash instead of credit or debit cards may help keep some people from overspending, because you can see how little is left in your wallet after every purchase. In short, getting rid of cash would impose hardships on society's most vulnerable people and could jeopardize our privacy.
Going cashless can bring many benefits such as increased transparency, reduced corruption, enhanced tax collection, and economic growth. Which country has a cashless economy?
Inflation Is Eating Away at Your Funds
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average rate of inflation from April 2023 to April 2024 was 3.4%. If you've been keeping your money in a savings account with a lower yield than the rate of inflation, you should switch over to a higher-yield account.
Is the US Going to Digital Dollar? As of June 2024, the US Federal Reserve has not decided to transition to a CBDC or supplement its existing monetary system with one. It is researching the effects a CBDC would have on the dollar, the US, and the global economy.
The answer is yes if you fail to pay your taxes. In addition, the government permita an employer or financial institution to do so in certain situations. If you plan for debt and other required payments properly, chances are that money won't ever have to be removed from your account without your permission.
Physical currency isn't becoming obsolete any time soon, so it's important to weigh up your options before deciding to go fully cashless in 2025. Ensuring you can accept some cashless payments though, is essential to keeping with today's trends and customer expectations.
Scripture is clear that while debt itself may not be sinful, it's also not God's best for His people. This is because when we choose to borrow money, we are putting our trust and confidence in a credit card or a lender instead of in Christ.
First, God's city, the New Jerusalem, will come down from heaven and be established on planet Earth (Revelation 21:1). Second, those who rejected Jesus will be brought to life again to receive their judgment (Revelation 20:5).