Fewer and fewer people in the United States (and throughout the rest of the world, for that matter) are carrying cold hard cash, instead opting to do the bulk of their shopping with a credit card, debit card, or even mobile applications tied directly to their bank accounts.
This has led to a significant amount of very influential people around the world speculating on whether or not we are going to ever truly transition to a cashless society, something that has been predicted for quite a while now but hasn’t ever really become a reality.
Let’s break down the benefits and disadvantages of moving to a cashless society right now!
List of Pros of Cashless Societies
A cashless society is being pushed pretty heavily by government agencies all over the world, and for good reason. A cashless society is more effectively managed, offers better security than cold hard cash does, and guarantees that your transactions are tied to you and you alone.
On top of that, cashless societies are going to completely eliminate the need to carry cash whatsoever, increasing convenience across the board. Being able to make digital payments with your phone or advanced hardware could completely streamline the shopping process, eliminating the need for a lot of headache and hassle than most people contend with when they shop today.
Lending and borrowing money would also become simple and straightforward. The process would take almost no time whatsoever as all of your financial information would be contained within a singular “block”, and you could be granted access to those funds immediately as well.
List of Cons of Cashless Societies
On the flipside, people are still incredibly wary about the safety and security of “all-digital” solutions – and for good reason.
Hackers can gain access to any sort of digital files these days and manipulate them in any and every way they see fit. It wouldn’t be all that challenging for those with power and influence to move digital money into their accounts illegally or illicitly, and without the physical means to audit these kinds of individuals it would be next to impossible to detect these kinds of crimes.
On top of that, if your account does somehow become compromised you would have to worry about your entire financial future being devastated and every single corner of your financial life touched by these intruders. Should a cashless society depend on battery-powered technology you wouldn’t be able to make purchases without a device that had a charge, and anyone that has had their smart phone die on them before their day was done knows just how much of a hassle this can be.