Designing the Cash Cycle of the Future

The 2023 Future of Cash Conference takes place 6-8 November in Istanbul, and will bring together all stakeholders of the cash community – central banks, financial institutions, retailers, cash management companies, technology providers and supplier - to discuss new strategies to design the cash cycle of the future.

The conference focuses on understanding the changing cash environment and what stakeholders are doing to optimise the cash cycle and ensure the future viability and sustainability of cash. Its key focus is to discuss, debate and design new strategies for creating the cash cycle of the future.

According to Conference Chairman, Guillaume Lepecq of CashEssentials, the 2023 event will feature unique, novel and interactive sessions.

Shaping the future of cash

The pandemic has demonstrated to all the importance of cash in times of crisis and the stabilising effect it plays on the economy, he says. However, the pandemic has also turbo-charged the ongoing shift away from cash for transactions. This in turn has accelerated the closure of bank branches and ATMs, making it more difficult and more expensive to pay or to receive payment in cash.

Some countries and institutions are taking measures to safeguard the cash infrastructure, and this is a step in the right direction. The conference will invite key players to share their vision on how to ensure a viable cash ecosystem. Safeguarding the infrastructure is, however, far from enough, as in many countries the situation has already deteriorated.

To preserve cash for those who need it, and those want it, says Guillaume, it is necessary to re-imagine the cash cycle. This includes - but is not limited to - guaranteeing a regulatory framework that ensures access to cash for all and its acceptance; redesigning the critical infrastructure to distribute and collect cash, combining existing and alternative cash distribution channels – Cashtech, cash-in-shop, cashback, bank hubs; widespread public education campaign which ensures all citizens – and regulators – fully understand the social and economic role of cash.

Highly interactive sessions, using collective intelligence, will invite participants to imagine and challenge possible and desirable futures for cash.

CashTech awards

CashTech is described by CashEssentials as the encounter of cash and technology. It brings together innovative companies who leverage software and modern communications technology to improve cash services – including access for consumers and businesses, facilitating the acceptance of cash by retailers across all channels, and enhancing cash’s overall efficiency, resilience and sustainability.

The CashTech Innovation Awards , first launched at last year’s Future of Cash in Madrid, will celebrate the tremendous advances in harnessing digital technology to ensure an accessible, reliable and sustainable future for cash.

Cash as a public good or a basic right

There will also be a special seminar during which researchers and academics will be invited to frame the discussion on cash as a public good, a public infrastructure and/or a basic right.

This is not just a semantic debate between economists and researchers, says Guillaume. It has far-reaching implications on the organisation of the cash cycle, including: 

• If cash is a public good, does the government have a duty to ensure its availability?

• Can ensuring its availability be delegated to the central bank?

• Could this accelerate the withdrawal of commercial banks from the cash cycle, on the basis that it is the government's responsibility to ensure a smooth circulation of cash?

• Could this lead to a redesign of the business model underlying the cash cycle and striking a new balance between market forces and the public sector?

• What does neutrality towards payment instruments mean in this case?

• What are the implications for a Central Dank Digital Currency?

The seminar will be held on Friday, 8 November, and is open to all conference participants.

For more information, visit www.thefutureofcash.com