Disappearance of cash and bitcoin as an alternative?

[darkangel11]

IMO cash is not going away anytime soon.
Many countries have the use and acceptance of cash written in their constitution. Slovakia has recently added it as a response to the European Central Bank push for digital Euro.
It reminds me of how some states in the US made laws to allow free bitcoin mining when the government tried to attack it. There will always be a pushback whenever they try to enforce such laws.
ATMs aren't going away, they're just being limited due to new money laundering laws around the world. They want to decrease the cash flow for easier surveillance and control since paying with cash allows for some anonymity and that's what the government doesn't like, but it's not like they can tell you all to stop using cash.

[Faisal2202]

What's the essence in asking this question while we all know, why BTC originated, why we needed it. To fight financial crisis, so what does financial crisis means. It means devaluation of cash, no access and control over cash. Unlimited supply of cash, and total destruction of money.

Above factors are only few ones from the list of why BTC was made? Well, ignoring them, what i think is, BTC will replace cash as i prefer to store any money (of course enough to pay fee) into BTC. Why? Because sometimes i went to Bank to use atm and ATM are closed. Why? Because they said, there is no money in national reserves so they just put that notice on the Door of ATM and people with less knowledge just ignore the sign and come after that day to store more money into the bank. (People like me just get more scared).

I totally agree with you and i do want BTC to replace Cash but still BTC has no potential to be selected as single cash, as every country has its own cash form and for BTC to be adopted equally (single cash = single form of money) overall the world, this needs some big changes and of course a transactions from single country will make the BTC blockchain more congested that each transaction will takes several months to complete.

[Becassine]

What's the essence in asking this question while we all know, why BTC originated, why we needed it. To fight financial crisis, so what does financial crisis means. It means devaluation of cash, no access and control over cash. Unlimited supply of cash, and total destruction of money.

Above factors are only few ones from the list of why BTC was made? Well, ignoring them, what i think is, BTC will replace cash as i prefer to store any money (of course enough to pay fee) into BTC. Why? Because sometimes i went to Bank to use atm and ATM are closed. Why? Because they said, there is no money in national reserves so they just put that notice on the Door of ATM and people with less knowledge just ignore the sign and come after that day to store more money into the bank. (People like me just get more scared).

I totally agree with you and i do want BTC to replace Cash but still BTC has no potential to be selected as single cash, as every country has its own cash form and for BTC to be adopted equally (single cash = single form of money) overall the world, this needs some big changes and of course a transactions from single country will make the BTC blockchain more congested that each transaction will takes several months to complete.

Why do I ask? Because I realized that sometimes things seemed obvious to me, but in fact other people might think differently (very differently). When I posted a question about how to orange pill friends for example, I never imagined that the expression "orange pill" could sound negative. I think it's very important to have different opinions so as not to get stuck in one's own views/ideas.

[DapanasFruit]

Right now, we are in the verge - or the founding stage - of digitalization most especially with many countries already experimenting the use of CBDCs. I am sure that in the coming years there can be a big push for more and more digital-based transactions even going down to the lowest level which is the consumers and here in my country this is already happening though we are not yet as advanced as Western economies. Now, having said that, I am not inclined to believe that cash as we know it will be totally wiped out as some will still prefer to be traditional and we have to respect that.

[ancafe]

Atm has been disappearing for years now (not completly  ). With the Covid crisis, people were encouraged to pay by CB on the pretext that banknotes could carry viruses. Some banks refuse cash deposits and withdrawals. Some currencies are worthless: sometimes they're used to fuel fires, or to create bags (Venezuelan bolivares, for example). What does the future hold for cash, and can btc become an alternative

This is not entirely true and paper currency is still a means of payment and for now ATMs have not disappeared and are still used in general in several areas freely. Where do you get the information that cash and ATMs are disappearing for now and there are some areas that haven't been widely touched by the internet so it takes a process for bitcoin to become an option for everyone. Cash is still circulating and there is no guarantee how long it will stop because after all cash is still the medium of payment used by most people today.

Bitcoin will find much greater adoption over time and indeed its growth will be even greater, but it will not replace cash as an alternative anytime soon as many people still use cash as a legal means of transaction. For the future, we never know whether bitcoin will become an alternative because so far we have only used bitcoin as an investment.

[Husires]

This is not entirely true and paper currency is still a means of payment and for now ATMs have not disappeared and are still used in general in several areas freely.

Inflation and digitization may be among the things that led to the limited use of automatic teller machines (ATMs), I mean that these machines do not give a lot of cash, and with inflation, the value of money withdrawn is greater than that which these machines can absorb. Countries such as Brazil, Turkey, and Venezuela, which were affected by hyperinflation, will decrease. Where is the percentage of use of ATMs.

In areas where there is no Internet, there are solutions for payment by EMS messages and some centralized solutions, which have been popular in some African countries. M-Pesa is a service that does this in Africa.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M-Pesa

The reasons for the need to transfer cash have decreased significantly, and reliance on banks has become a basic form.

[UchihaSarada]

Atm has been disappearing for years now (not completly  ). With the Covid crisis, people were encouraged to pay by CB on the pretext that banknotes could carry viruses. Some banks refuse cash deposits and withdrawals.

What is CB?

Those practices during pandemic and when there was no vaccine for the world population are vital to control the virus spread and minimize infected cases, severe cases and deaths. It returned to normal gradually since the world had vaccines and started to massively vaccine population.

Some currencies are worthless: sometimes they're used to fuel fires, or to create bags (Venezuelan bolivares, for example).

Those fiat currencies from such countries are different. They are bad nations with serious economics, political crises and failed to control inflation. Those hyper inflation in those nations even appeared years before a pandemic outbreak.

What does the future hold for cash, and can btc become an alternative?

Bitcoin will become one of alternative, like CBDCs and altcoins, gold, silver. It will never be the only alternative for cash and cash won't disappear globally in financial flows.

[Oasisman]

Cash won't disappear or phased out , at least not in the next 20 years or so. There are still a lot people who prefer to pay for transactions through cash, especially in the third world country where there's more than half the population who are not computer literate. They even find banks and ATM a complex thing to take and deposit their money. Let along understanding Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency.
These people who just used the e-wallets they are constantly getting scammed and as a result they have preferred back in using cash.

[Becassine]

Atm has been disappearing for years now (not completly  ). With the Covid crisis, people were encouraged to pay by CB on the pretext that banknotes could carry viruses. Some banks refuse cash deposits and withdrawals.

What is CB?

Those practices during pandemic and when there was no vaccine for the world population are vital to control the virus spread and minimize infected cases, severe cases and deaths. It returned to normal gradually since the world had vaccines and started to massively vaccine population.

Oups sorry, it comes from french : CB = carte bancaire = credit card

In any case, one thing is certain: credit card payments are enriching Visa, Mastercard and others.

Cash won't disappear or phased out , at least not in the next 20 years or so. There are still a lot people who prefer to pay for transactions through cash, especially in the third world country where there's more than half the population who are not computer literate. They even find banks and ATM a complex thing to take and deposit their money. Let along understanding Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency.
These people who just used the e-wallets they are constantly getting scammed and as a result they have preferred back in using cash.

Yes, I hadn't thought of that! It's obvious though, it's a bit of a hassle sometimes, and indeed, malicious "help" can really do damage.

[kryptqnick]

It seems to me that the distribution of ATMs and the popularity of cash depend a lot on the kind of country we're dealing with. Some countries actively resist the trend of becoming cashless economies, and there are also rural vs urban differences (cash is often more prevalent in rural areas).
I like that the op's poll allows choosing multiple options. I chose the first one because I don't think cash will be replaced by Bitcoin (although I don't think it's a conspiracy either). I also chose #3 because I've seen examples of strong cashless economies where you sometimes can't even pay in cash (or pay more in cash than by card). That being said, it doesn't mean that Bitcoin is actively adopted there, as cash is often simply replaced by cards.

[so98nn]

Atm has been disappearing for years now (not completly  ). With the Covid crisis, people were encouraged to pay by CB on the pretext that banknotes could carry viruses. Some banks refuse cash deposits and withdrawals. Some currencies are worthless: sometimes they're used to fuel fires, or to create bags (Venezuelan bolivares, for example). What does the future hold for cash, and can btc become an alternative?

Thank you

Well, that is not entirely true. There are still thousands of ATMs in every city and county, and the number is always growing. The number of ATMs also has got nothing to do with the disappearance of the cash. When it comes to big businesses and big deals users can not withdraw enough cash from the ATM and then at that time it's taken from the Bank directly. ATMs are just for a small amount of money that is needed and can be withdrawn now and then. However, still, a big chunk of users would go to the banks and withdraw or cash out their money.

Cash will coexist in the future. Though the digital world is rising at one end, it has zero impact on the reduced usage of cash. Many of the oldies would still prefer the cash and this rate is huge in the America or other western countries.

[ancafe]

Inflation and digitization may be among the things that led to the limited use of automatic teller machines (ATMs), I mean that these machines do not give a lot of cash, and with inflation, the value of money withdrawn is greater than that which these machines can absorb. Countries such as Brazil, Turkey, and Venezuela, which were affected by hyperinflation, will decrease. Where is the percentage of use of ATMs.

In areas where there is no Internet, there are solutions for payment by EMS messages and some centralized solutions, which have been popular in some African countries. M-Pesa is a service that does this in Africa.

Maybe the three countries you mentioned are a small part of the limitations of using automated teller machines (ATMs), in general, ATM machines have a limited amount of money in them and the Bank has to try to top it up regularly every time people take lots of money. For my country this does not yet apply to scarcity or reduction and ATM machines are still an alternative used by people and we don't even need to queue at the teller to deposit money because cash ATMs are available.

Talk of depreciating in value may be true that fiat currency has a dipping point and this is not a solution to holding fiat currency long term and most people are trying to find alternatives to store value.

The reasons for the need to transfer cash have decreased significantly, and reliance on banks has become a basic form.

For this problem you are right and I do not deny because indeed money has depreciated, thus forcing people to look for an alternative in hedging. Various factors have put money at the stage of losing trust, but whether we realize it or not we still need it enough.

[Minhxx]

Atm has been disappearing for years now (not completly  ). With the Covid crisis, people were encouraged to pay by CB on the pretext that banknotes could carry viruses. Some banks refuse cash deposits and withdrawals. Some currencies are worthless: sometimes they're used to fuel fires, or to create bags (Venezuelan bolivares, for example). What does the future hold for cash, and can btc become an alternative?

Thank you

i think cash will not be lost , it is still traded in small locales . Most people choose wire transfer payment method because of its convenience. I hope my country will accept bitcoin in the future.

[Despairo]

Assuming cash is disappearing, do you think debit/credit card and other digital fiat can't be used to replace cash? I don't see Bitcoin is an alternative as a currency when they don't have cash or digital fiat at the moment. I'd say they will negotiate with the seller and give their valuable thing as a collateral, then they will comeback into their house to grab some cash or credit/debit card to pay the bills.

Bitcoin is the last choice when they don't have cash, digital fiat or can't negotiate.

[crwth]

It shouldn't completely disappear, possibly in our lifetime. Many companies have already been going with paperless things, but it's still inevitable not to have any paper when running a business. It's always going to be that thing that exists. So in terms of money and currency, I don't think we will reach a point where there's no cash.

[BenCodie]

I am surprised that the votes are leaning toward conspiracy theory when governments and banks have both signalled the intention to abolish cash and restrict money to digital transactions in the future...it's not a conspiracy at this stage, it's factual.

The point in which governments do take this route will be when they need to reduce monetary supply significantly to increase the perceived value of money. A lot of illegal money will not be able to be traded in for digital currency, therefore a lot of supply will theoretically disappear. This point is sooner than what everyone may think, I believe within the next 3 - 9 years.

[yudi09]

Various excuses can be made if those in power in each country want to get rid of cash.
Like the history of fiat currency from ancient times to the present.
Indirectly I judge that the transaction system has started to change to digitization.
Many shopping stores now provide transactions via e-money.
When I forget to bring my debit or ATM card, I can still make transactions. In the past, maybe in the era of our parents, they forgot to bring a wallet containing paper money or coins, so I can say they couldn't do transactions.

-snip-
What does the future hold for cash, and can btc become an alternative?

I can't say for sure that it could happen.
I also can't give two choices out of the six you listed in the poll.

[KiaKia]

All this is all down to if Bitcoin is ever going to replace Fiat currency, I think we all know the answer to this already, if something will take over the Fiat currency I am sorry to say that it is never going to be Bitcoin, do not forget that the government knew about the advantages of digital currency that's why they coming out with CBDC and that's why they stamping crypto as an asset, with the ETF approval in the work, the whole steps is making some sense don't you think?

Unfortunately, Bitcoin is only a currency that will live within the people's hearts, it is money for the people alone. We will spend it and accept it only within ourselves.

[bluebit25]

I don't think this is a fair comparison in the financial system, can't speak to the limitations of one versus the potentialities of another. We are in a common environment I think need more harmony in economic as well as financial system, crypto or btc can bring good solution but it doesn't mean they are applied properly, just like fiat in the current context we still have to rely heavily on them and this is almost the place for us to do all other connected things in life. Perhaps over time as science and technology evolves the way money is used and viewed will change, maybe crypto will be an area where people actually use so much that it's like we are using money everyday.

[Mauser]

Atm has been disappearing for years now (not completly  ). With the Covid crisis, people were encouraged to pay by CB on the pretext that banknotes could carry viruses. Some banks refuse cash deposits and withdrawals. Some currencies are worthless: sometimes they're used to fuel fires, or to create bags (Venezuelan bolivares, for example). What does the future hold for cash, and can btc become an alternative?

Thank you

I think that in some countries Bitcoins are already a great alternative to the local currencies. Countries that have very high inflation makes dealing in their Fiat money hard as the value of the money changes so quickly. When businesses needs to change their prices multiple times a day to account for the hyper inflation, things are very bad and consumers might look for alternatives. Bitcoins would be the perfect alternative in such a case as it won't be affected by inflation in the same way. Another factor is the comfortability of paying with digital currencies, we don't need to carry around large amounts of cash anymore and can have a better overview over our expenses. When paying digitally we already have a summary of all our outgoing transactions, with cash it's much harder to keep on track of all the things we bought.