Swedes Turn Against Cashlessness (theguardian.com)

An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: It is hard to argue that you cannot trust the government when the government isn't really all that bad. This is the problem facing the small but growing number of Swedes anxious about their country's rush to embrace a cash-free society. Most consumers already say they manage without cash altogether, while shops and cafes increasingly refuse to accept notes and coins because of the costs and risk involved. Until recently, however, it has been hard for critics to find a hearing. "The Swedish government is a rather nice one, we have been lucky enough to have mostly nice ones for the past 100 years," says Christian Engstrom, a former MEP for the Pirate Party and an early opponent of the cashless economy. "In other countries there is much more awareness that you cannot trust the government all the time. In Sweden it is hard to get people mobilized."

There are signs this might be changing. In February, the head of Sweden's central bank warned that Sweden could soon face a situation where all payments were controlled by private sector banks. The Riksbank governor, Stefan Ingves, called for new legislation to secure public control over the payments system, arguing that being able to make and receive payments is a "collective good" like defense, the courts, or public statistics. "Most citizens would feel uncomfortable to surrender these social functions to private companies," he said. "It should be obvious that Sweden's preparedness would be weakened if, in a serious crisis or war, we had not decided in advance how households and companies would pay for fuel, supplies and other necessities." The report mentions a recently-released opinion poll, which found that seven out of 10 Swedes wanted to keep the option to use cash, while just 25% wanted a completely cashless society.

Comments

Why would you want cashless?

[alvinrod]

Why would you want a cashless society? Having the ability to pay in cash doesn't require you to do so yourself. I can't wrap my head around the fact that there are some people who actively want fewer choices even when the alternative options require nothing from them in terms of action or cost. Even from a business owner's perspective, there's nothing that says your business has to accept cash payments, unless there's some obscure Swedish laws of which I'm unaware.

Re:Why would you want cashless?

[Actually, I do RTFA]

Cash transactions are also slower than just waving your phone

I can just wave my phone? Do I have to flip it open, or can I leave it shut? And how do I pay to refill the phone with the phone?

I spent two months working in Shanghai last fall.

Of course the Chinese are going to have a system in place to track everything you do.

Re:Why would you want cashless?

[lucm]

It's a bank scam. They want to avoid a situation like Japan or Iceland where people started to buy safes to keep cash at home because negative interest rates meant that banks were charging fees for cash deposits.

The whole banking system in Europe is corrupt. From Ambrosiano to Libor scandals, from the Swiss hoarding nazi gold to HSBC laundering drug money, from Latvian banksters to Maltese murderers, it's a huge network of thieves and common criminals. Even Wells Fargo and their fake accounts don't come close to the level of European crooks.

Re:Why would you want cashless?

[Khyber]

"Cash transactions are also slower than just waving your phone, which raises costs."

Every place I go where they need me to use a fucking chipped card, it takes about 15 seconds for the transaction. As a former cashier, I could've done the entire transaction in my head and had the change in the customer's hands in less than ten seconds.

Might be slower for you now because of all the clueless millennials in retail positions.

Re:Why would you want cashless?

[Archfeld]

Cash if FAR cheaper. Having to accept credit cards entails a hefty surcharge by the credit card company, as well as a delay in getting paid, and the additional risk of credit card fraud. While a debit card is faster and cheaper it still involves network fees and equipment rental and service.

Cash is king

[Khyber]

No matter what anyone says, when power goes out and communications infrastructure goes to shit or gets attacked, regular hard currency will still work until the human race forgets how to add and subtract.

Re:Why would you want any other way ?

[Archfeld]

So who is going to buy me a smart phone, and pay for a data plan ? I don't have one and I don't want one. My simple dumb Trac phone with just text and phone service is cheap easy and my choice. I have a visa/debit card that I keep for emergency use only, and I have to remind myself to use it for an inquiry once every 90 days or the damn credit union suspends it. As a contractor I am paid by certified check thru my contracting office rather than by the current employer. I use and cash for almost everything except monthly bills which are paid out of my checking account via automatic withdrawal. Does my dope dealer have to pay square or some vendor to stay in business ? How do I give the 'vet' hanging out on the corner a couple of bucks for hamburger evey now and then. Uncle Sam is up in my grill enough with having every dollar I choose to spend analyzed by them.

Re:Those levying the tax are the thieves

[Anonymous Coward]

No, tax is something that we (society) agreed upon in exchange for other services. That is, we pooled some of our assets together to be able to build roads, hospitals and schools. Sure, some like this agreement more than others, and some, like you, don't like it at all. The mystery is why nutjobs like you don't move to some uninhabited corner of the world and live off the grid, only interacting with other nutjobs. Now let us, the rest of society, to be in peace, not needing to hear your tinfoil, paranoia-filled rants.