The U.S. Is a Long Way from Becoming Cashless

Cash will be an important part of the U.S. economy for a long time to come, NerdWallet’s Amber Murakami-Fester writes in a piece for Time.com. On both the consumer and merchant side, cash makes up a large percentage of payments and it can be cheaper for merchants and shoppers to use.

Odds are that in your town there are a few cash-only restaurants or shops. Indeed, 55% of small businesses in the U.S. don’t accept plastic, according to a survey by financial software company Intuit.

Accepting credit cards can cost a business up to 4% per transaction, says Mallory Duncan, general counsel at the National Retail Federation, and mobile payments like Apple Pay can be just as expensive for merchants.

The push towards a cashless society is fueled by companies who stand to gain from transactions moving from cash to other forms of payments. That push has yet to disrupt the fundamental value propositions of cash, including liquidity, guarantee of good funds, and privacy. Those advantages mean cash is likely to be with for a long time to come.

Overview by Ben Jackson, Director, Prepaid Advisory Service at Mercator Advisory Group

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