Experts from the Bundestag warn of a world without cash. Should existing trends in payment continue to strengthen, then a basic service could be necessary in Germany in the future. According to a study that has just been presented, large tech companies already have a lot of influence on payment systems.
Bundestag: Experts warn of cash end
A new study by the Office for Technology Assessment at the German Bundestag (TAB) warns of a world without cash. Large corporations from the USA and China now have a major influence on payment systems in Germany. Therefore, the federal government must devote more attention to the question of how the ability of the European banking system to act can be ensured.
According to the TAB, cash has an “important corrective in payment transactions”. Especially Coins and bills are important when it comes to data protection, is it[calledNeitherdebitandcreditcardsnorcryptocurrencieslikebitcoinhave“asimilarlyhighlevelofinclusion”comparedtocash(source:heiseonline)
In the investigation, the TAB found that in terms of data protection significant differences depending on the payment method are. Debit cards fare best among cashless payment solutions, credit cards a little worse. On the other hand, the TAB takes a much more critical view of online payment services such as PayPal, since information is also collected and processed here that has nothing to do with the payment process itself.
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Bundesbank: cash on the retreat
According to a new study by the Bundesbank, card payments have become increasingly popular in Germany in recent years. Although 58 percent of payment transactions are still made with coins and bills, they are five years ago it was 74 percent. The corona pandemic in particular is likely to have contributed to consumers increasingly relying on contactless payment systems.