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Cashless Adoption Growing In Europe
dkatana writes: Many European cities are moving toward a cashless economy. Some public services are not accepting cash anymore, such as parking meters, buses and transit, and city offices. (If you plan to visit Europe make sure your credit card has a chip, or you won't be able to use self-service machines.) Contactless cards, which allow people to pay easily for small transactions, are also gaining popularity. According to Finextra, a leading financial news service, "contactless is the new normal in Europe, with more than a billion tap-and-go purchases worth €12.6 billion on Visa cards in the last 12 months."
In some places, cashless options are being pushed by mistrust of the banking system. At the same time, places like Germany are dead set on keeping cash as the preferred method of payment.
Wire transfers are extremely common in Europe; virtually instantaneous, cheap, etc. Customers can do them themselves, person to person.
Here in the US? Anywhere from a day to WEEKS for absolutely no legitimate reason. You generally need a teller or branch manager to do it. At least $5; $40 if the transaction ends up going through the Fed.
It's 2015. Why does transferring money in the US take more than a minute and a few cents?
Please help metamoderate.
This is how I read it as well... I am adopting a daughter next week friday from foster care for something like $53 total, so was thinking of paying cash... (the $53 is court costs, birth certificate etc...)
Was wondering if they went to a bartering scheme... I will give you 2 dogs for that child.
Governments worldwide, local and federal, increasingly are removing the ability to use cash. They cannot track it or you. Think that's tin foil hat thinking? Think again.
Here is something I know for a fact is happening because I've talked to people in the industry that tracks metrics. Your bank sells information about you to bidders. Your purchase habits, how often, what, where. Guess who is curious and is a buyer? Your insurance companies, health, car, and house. You think for a second your rates are random. They were on the past based on a given area and the demographics. They are now being tailored to you. Those triple meat pizza you order a few times a week are being noted. The condoms, liquor, and glue you buy are likewise noted. The fetishes you have, your peccadilloes, your predilections, you name it are all being tracked, correlated, and used against in decisions about you. Some people know of this, some don't.
When I eat out, I pay cash. When I buy wine and beer, I use cash. When I buy groceries, I use cash. I pay bills and such through my bank's bill pay system. Think this is not happening? Think again. Think your insurance companies don't look at your Facebook and Twitter accounts? Think again. This level of tracking is the new normal. Ever wonder why businesses want you to "friend" and "like" them? Ulterior motives, guys. To be certain. If I cannot pay cash, which, at least in America, is illegal not to accept, I don't play ball. I never give out my personal information, even to coworkers. Only my immediate boss has my mobile number, even the insurance companies don't have my SSN. They are not legally entitled. It took some fighting, and I called the SSA about it, and they said I only have to share it legally with my bank, my employer, and the IRS. No one else is legally entitled. So I refuse to give anyone anything. Yes, I'm a bit of a dick about it, but when I Google myself, my carefully curated life doesn't exist. Except for my name and address, nothing exists.
Some say that nothing having an Internet presence in the form of Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin is damaging, especially for IT guys like me, but I've been in this industry for almost 20 years and have never had an issue with not being found online. Some say increasingly that employers look at all the usual online places and if they cannot find you, you are not worth hiring.
Use cash as much as you can.
They did it as the credit card market is more competitive in the States. Many people have several cards, and the issuers felt that requiring people to remember a PIN would make it less likely that the shopper would choose their card.