The future of money

[RAMA]

Specifically bitcoin and the all-digital world of money!

http://spectrum.ieee.org/static/future-of-money

I've been part of the way there for years...I check my account info from my smartphone. I can transfer money electronically. I rarely use physical cash. Such things have been predicted in sci-fi for years, but it has happened at a greater rate since the market penetration of portable devices. Soon we will also see the digital transfer of goods, through 3D printing as well...all-in-one transaction!

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I use my debit card for pretty much everything. Almost no cash or paper checks. I'd love to ditch those last two things entirely, but unfortunately we're not there yet. I would also very much like to have my iPhone work as a digital wallet.

Don't much care for this 'Bitcoin', though. I would definitely have no use for it. I trust my bank.

 

[Santaman]

I still use cash a lot, markets also pretty much depend on cash although some indeed also have a mobile PIN device.

I like cash, I have always a little at hand for when technology breaks down..

As for 3D printing its certainly a nice development but in some cases not really useful like when I need part made out of a specific material that can't be printed like stainless steel or ceramics.

 

[Kemaiku]

I use both, and like the convenience of both, but they have their places. I don't see physical money disappearing all that quickly.

 

[MacLeod]

I use my debit card for pretty much everything. Almost no cash or paper checks. I'd love to ditch those last two things entirely, but unfortunately we're not there yet. I would also very much like to have my iPhone work as a digital wallet.

Don't much care for this 'Bitcoin', though. I would definitely have no use for it. I trust my bank.

Cheque's are almost gone now as well. Most retailers won't accept a cheque as a method of payment. Aside from paying your plumber or sending money as a gift. It's all but disappered from the UK. With a target date of 2018 for them to have been phased out (assuming the last few issues are resolved)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8414341.stm

As for myself, rarely carry cash with me except for maybe a bit of change for the Pay and Display car parks. Debit Cards make it so much easier.

If I lose a wallet with cash in, I lose the cash. With a wallet full of cards I don't lose any money.

 

[Kemaiku]

doesn't take that much effort to crack a card for most criminals, losing a wallet full of cards, you might as well hand them all your cash.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

But you can dispute fraudulent card charges with your bank.

 

[Kemaiku]

But you can dispute fraudulent card charges with your bank.

True, cancelling them and so on, I just feel better carrying as few cards as I need in a good wallet and enough cash to do what I need and some left over, always worked for me.

 

[BillJ]

I use both, and like the convenience of both, but they have their places. I don't see physical money disappearing all that quickly.

Yep.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

But you can dispute fraudulent card charges with your bank.

True, cancelling them and so on.

You don't even have to do that. Any decent bank will allow you to dispute a charge while still keeping the card.

If it's a debit card, they should credit the funds back to you while they investigate. If a credit card, you don't have to pay that part of the bill - again, until they investigate. In any case, stay far away from any bank that does not do these things.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Bitcoin is a joke. Digital currencies will only be viable if and when they are issued (and honored) by a government.

 

[Kemaiku]

You don't even have to do that. Any decent bank will allow you to dispute a charge while still keeping the card.

If it's a debit card, they should credit the funds back to you while they investigate. If a credit card, you don't have to pay that part of the bill - again, until they investigate. In any case, stay far away from any bank that does not do these things.

My bank does provide cover for fraud attempts on cards so they would. In any case I tend to make sure I have a good wallet, put it in a pocket that can be zipped/sealed etc or in a compartment in my bag, it's never really out of my sight.

 

[Crazy Eddie]

I use my debit card for pretty much everything. Almost no cash or paper checks. I'd love to ditch those last two things entirely, but unfortunately we're not there yet. I would also very much like to have my iPhone work as a digital wallet.

Don't much care for this 'Bitcoin', though. I would definitely have no use for it. I trust my bank.

I don't trust my bank. I haven't trusted them since they forgot to process my deposits for two and a half weeks and then charged me $200 in overdraft fees when I tried to pay my bills. Turns out they process withdrawals immediately, but deposits could take up to 7 business days to clear, longer if their computers go down for a few days for no apparent reason.

Haven't used a bank ever since. Mainly use cash and a pre-paid credit card for online shopping. If I ever have to go completely cashless, though, I'm going to be really annoyed, since I like being able to collect tips/payments without uncle sam knowing about it.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ You must have had a crappy bank. There are many that aren't.

 

[MacLeod]

^On the rare occasions where I make a cash deposit to my bank, the funds are available as soon as I've made the deposit. With a cheque at most it takes 3 working days.

 

[Ian Keldon]

There is a very good reason NOT to go "digi-cash".

A Carrington Event.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_storm_of_1859

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/...storms-earth-danger-carrington-event-science/

If that happened today, experts are saying it could take up to a year or more to get things up and running again, just for the power grid.

BTW: Bitcoin is not and never will be legitimate money. It's a fraud masquerading as a way to "stick it to the government" by way of tax avoidance and attempting to introduce a new 'money'.

 

[sojourner]

Yep, that's the top reason not too.

 

[Ian Keldon]

^Yes, it is. We depend too much on electronics and machines. Lose those, and there will be mass chaos.

 

[Crazy Eddie]

^On the rare occasions where I make a cash deposit to my bank, the funds are available as soon as I've made the deposit. With a cheque at most it takes 3 working days.

That's just it: there was a six month period where this was EXACTLY the case. Cash deposits were immediate, checks could take up to three days, money transfers (paypal, direct deposit, etc) were usually immediate but sometimes required one full business day.

This ceased to be the case very suddenly, without warning or prior notice, and I was informed by a customer service rep that the bank does not ALWAYS clear cash deposits the same day they're received and if I wanted to guarantee that I would have to upgrade to some sort of premium checking account (with a $500 minimum deposit). In the mean time I was still out 300 bucks.

And yes, I did have an unbelievably crappy bank. I'll give you three guesses what their name was.

 

[RobertVA]

A cashless society isn't going to be good for transactions that don't involve a licensed business:

• Repaying the neighbor that offers to pick up a few things for you when you can't go to the store (taking care of a sick child, sick yourself, car in the shop etc)
• Paying neighborhood youth that are working for a little pocket money (mowing lawns, babysitting etc).
• Charity fund raising sales (band candy, girl scout cookies etc)
• Yard/Garage sales
• Sending your own children (old enough to be unsupervised for a short while, but still minors) on errands to places like the supermarket or fast food restaurant.
• That little "I did it myself!" moment when a child makes their own purchase from the ice cream truck.

I also doubt vendors selling things like food or tee shirts at your typical summer fair or festival are going to be enthusiastic about handling a smart phone with a card reader hanging off its delicate headphone jack amongst all the confusion of preparing, tracking and delivering their customer's orders (in addition to keeping the phone battery charged all day). With thousands of festival attendees using their cells phones and dozens of vendors making credit/debit transactions the local cell tower might get a bit busy.

OTOH, I might be more comfortable giving a beggar a $5 gift card for a fast food restaurant than cash that could be used for a 40 oz beer at the local convenience store.