Cash & Payment News July Issue

In the July edition of Cash & Payment News™ we report a mixed picture about the health of cash. We start with the editor’s view of his first 12 months in the role where he identifies the cash paradox, the technology response to the pandemic, anxiety and efforts to secure access to cash, the rise of interest and activity around Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and the environment as clear themes. This edition supports all of them!

The Swiss National Bank survey shows cash usage reducing markedly since their 2019 survey while a US survey, while showing a decline, provides strong evidence that cash remains integral to how Americans live and what they value. The Dutch National Bank has published the McKinsey report on the future for cash infrastructure in the Netherlands and the Enryo consultancy suggests that cash in circulation is not a useful measure to use when considering the health of cash. We summarise three of June’s Bundesbank cash conference presentations about the impact of contactless payments on cash, the shadow economy and a model for estimating transaction volumes post-pandemic.

We report on some of the less visible downsides of digital payments, crime, including the use of cryptocurrencies, and the challenges of financial exclusion. Perhaps it should be no surprise that a bill has been put forward in the US to maintain payment choice. In Payment News we report on rising digital payment costs and the impact of China’s ban on crypto mining.

Finally in our CBDC news section, there are reports from the Vice Chair for Supervision of the Federal Reserve Bank and the American Institute for Economic Research asking serious questions about why the US needs a CBDC and what they are for.

It appears July’s edition contains a fair representation of the last year’s activity.

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