The War on Cash

Lately I’ve been hearing a lot of talk about getting rid of cash, mainly large denominations and wanted to get your opinions on the matter. This infographic does a nice job of detailing the key points surrounding the issue. Proponents of the idea say it will make it harder on criminals such as terrorists, tax evaders, money launderers, etc. And also allow regulators greater control over the economy, and result in faster and more efficient transactions. On the other hand, there are fears about privacy, savings, human rights, and cybersecurity.

Governments and central banks have moved swiftly in dozens of countries to start eliminating cash. Australia, Singapore, Venezuela, the U.S., and the European Central Bank have all eliminated (or have proposed to eliminate) high denomination notes. Other countries like France, Sweden and Greece have targeted adding restrictions on the size of cash transactions, reducing the amount of ATMs in the countryside, or limiting the amount of cash that can be held outside of the banking system. Finally, some countries have taken things a full step further – South Korea aims to eliminate paper currency in its entirety by 2020.

The recent demonetization in India proves that this can be done, though it still remains to be seen how beneficial it really is. So is cash still king?