PAYMENT SOLUTIONS
GOING CASHLESS :
ARE BANKNOTES IN DANGER OF EXTINCTION ?
The use of cold hard currency is swiftly dwindling in our post pandemic world . But are global digital payment solutions the answer ?
WRITTEN BY : JOANNA ENGLAND
In 1987 , the fabric of payment systems globally began to change . In June of that year , the very first debit cards in the UK – featuring a magnetic strip on the reverse and holographic security features – were introduced by Barclays Bank . By 1993 , debit card payment machines in retail were a commonplace feature , and Mastercard launched Maestro – its international debit card .
From then on , it ' s been an increasingly steep slope towards the eradication of cash altogether , prompted by internet shopping , mobile banking , the development of e-wallets and blockchain , and now , the COVID-19 pandemic .
Digital payment solutions are faster , safer and ( according to the WHO ) cleaner than solid currency . Indeed , earlier last year , following the COVID-19 pandemic announcement , the WHO advised the public to wash their hands after handling money .
“ Banknotes may be spreading the new coronavirus so people should try to use contactless payments instead ,” the World Health Organisation said .
Since then , the circulation of cash has fallen dramatically . According to a
report from The Bank Of England , in 2019 , cash remained an important part of the UK economy , with an estimated 9.3 billion cash payments made that year and 2.1 million people mainly using cash for their daily transactions .
The report confirmed that “ both the volume and value of cash withdrawn from the ATM network overseen by LINK , a private not-for-profit company run on behalf of its commercial members , were approximately 60 % lower in late March 2020 than the same period in 2019 .
“ Cash withdrawals from ATMs increased slowly over subsequent weeks but remain well below previous levels . By the second week of October ATM volumes and values were still about 40 % and 30 % lower respectively than the previous year .”
Critically endangered
Kealan Lennon , CEO at CleverCards , a leading
fintech that is partnered with Mastercard , says there ’ s no doubt about the swiftly diminishing circulation of cash . He says , “ Cash usage has been declining across the globe in the past decade and that has been accelerated by the COVID pandemic over virus concerns and a shift to online commerce .”