Post by graynomad on Apr 2, 2017 22:23:20 GMT 10
For some time now we have been talking about the oncoming cashless society. I have argued that it is not possible with current technology, and that still holds true IMO, but the technology required is not that much ahead of what most of us carry every day.
One of the things people think is that it needs 100% up time and 100% coverage with the mobile phone network, and indeed I've argued that myself before. But I've thought about it and decided that it doesn't really need mobile coverage at all, it just needs devices (like smart phones) that are secure and that store your "cash" electronically. You could use them with or without coverage (up to some $ limit) and when you do finally get a connection it balances the books.
The device simply stores the transactions you've made since the last sync with your bank, and next time you have a connection it syncs again and everyone has their "money".
It's a little like buying fuel in Warburton on the Great Central Rd in WA, there is nothing there, certainly no internet or phone for the credit card machines so they swipe your card on one of those old machines that imprints the details onto paper, then you sign the chit. Every week or so somebody drives into the nearest town (Laverton IIRC) with a suitcase full of CC chits and presents them to the bank.
This same system would work with smart phones, but not the ones we have now, everyone would need a new phone with the new technology and some of us would finally have to get a smart phone
Or maybe a newer type of smart card would be all that is required, most cards and licenses already have embedded microprocessors so it's not a huge leap to embed such technology as well I think.
This post was prompted by an email I just received from a mob I subscribe to, as follows...
Putting Beggars Out of Business
By Mat Spasic in Albert Park
Heard the one about the beggar that asked a businessman for spare change?
Rumour has it the businessman smiled kindly, pointed to his pockets, and apologetically replied, ‘Sorry mate, I only carry cards.’
Before he could stroll off, the beggar reached out to stop him. He ruffled around in his large trench coat pocket.
The businessman, concerned at the prospect of being mugged, flinched. But, to his amazement, the vagrant pulled out a smartphone from his pocket.
Coolly, he told the businessman: ‘That’s OK, mate. I accept AMEX, Visa or MasterCard.’
Now, before you chalk this down as little more than a quip, consider the very real possibility that this scenario could be coming to a street corner near you. And soon.
The Reserve Bank of Australia announced plans this week to roll out new technology to facilitate the ongoing shift towards a fully digital payment system.
Rather uninventively, it’s been dubbed the New Payment Platform, or NPP.
The NPP will allow you to transfer and receive money instantly. And it won’t matter one jot whether you share the same bank as the person or institution you’re transacting with.
No more hassles involving payee details and BSB numbers, or waiting for the dreaded business days to roll over. All you’ll need is a phone number or email address. With either in hand, you’ll be able to make transactions in split seconds.
It all sounds good in theory. And we imagine it’d work just as well in practice. We only wonder whether the emergence of this new technology will consign cash to the dustbin of history.
The payment paradigm shift is well underway
You won’t be surprised to hear that Australia is well on its way to becoming a cashless society. But it might shock you to learn how far we’ve already come.
ATM withdrawals peaked in 2009–10, and have been falling ever since. Impressively, three out of every four transactions made today use digital ‘tap-and-go’ systems.
We can’t argue with the convenience of digital payment systems. Yet our worry isn’t that Australians are migrating to cashless systems. Rather, it’s the questionable motives behind this push — seemingly intent on eliminating cash altogether — which concern us.
First, this measure will affect consumers and small businesses in equal measure.
Some services will become more expensive. Remember, smaller businesses already have to absorb the costs of surcharges that come with payless systems. That’s already forcing many businesses to pass the costs on to consumers. If they no longer have the option of cash, this will only get worse. It may even push some struggling businesses over the edge.
But there’s a bigger issue at hand here that is all too often overlooked.
Global strategist and former CIA insider Jim Rickards says cashless systems are designed to herd the public into the regulated banking system.
Once everyone is rounded up, so to speak, it gives central banks more room to manoeuvre on monetary policy. As Jim told his subscribers in Strategic Intelligence, central bankers are intent on setting the stage for unencumbered interest rates. This simply means removing any obstacles which allow central banks to manipulate rates beyond existing natural barriers.
As you may have guessed, the number one obstacle standing in the way of unencumbered interest rates is cash.
Eliminating cash would open the door for a whole host of unfettered policies. Commercial banks could raise service fees, freeze accounts and enforce bail-in charges without recourse. These would be impossible to avoid once cash has been eliminated, as you’d have no place to store your money outside of hard assets.
As it happens, the convenience of digital payment systems means policymakers have had to do little to convince the public of its merits. We’ve done all the heavy lifting ourselves. But this convenience is blinding us to the potential pitfalls that lie in wait.
In truth, we’ve already lost the war on cash. There’s no turning back at this point.
Yet, while we may end up as herded cattle, we can avoid being slaughtered.
The end of cash is coming, but it shouldn’t spell the end of your freedom. You owe it to yourself to learn how to escape this banking trap.
One of the things people think is that it needs 100% up time and 100% coverage with the mobile phone network, and indeed I've argued that myself before. But I've thought about it and decided that it doesn't really need mobile coverage at all, it just needs devices (like smart phones) that are secure and that store your "cash" electronically. You could use them with or without coverage (up to some $ limit) and when you do finally get a connection it balances the books.
The device simply stores the transactions you've made since the last sync with your bank, and next time you have a connection it syncs again and everyone has their "money".
It's a little like buying fuel in Warburton on the Great Central Rd in WA, there is nothing there, certainly no internet or phone for the credit card machines so they swipe your card on one of those old machines that imprints the details onto paper, then you sign the chit. Every week or so somebody drives into the nearest town (Laverton IIRC) with a suitcase full of CC chits and presents them to the bank.
This same system would work with smart phones, but not the ones we have now, everyone would need a new phone with the new technology and some of us would finally have to get a smart phone
Or maybe a newer type of smart card would be all that is required, most cards and licenses already have embedded microprocessors so it's not a huge leap to embed such technology as well I think.This post was prompted by an email I just received from a mob I subscribe to, as follows...
Putting Beggars Out of Business
By Mat Spasic in Albert Park
Heard the one about the beggar that asked a businessman for spare change?
Rumour has it the businessman smiled kindly, pointed to his pockets, and apologetically replied, ‘Sorry mate, I only carry cards.’
Before he could stroll off, the beggar reached out to stop him. He ruffled around in his large trench coat pocket.
The businessman, concerned at the prospect of being mugged, flinched. But, to his amazement, the vagrant pulled out a smartphone from his pocket.
Coolly, he told the businessman: ‘That’s OK, mate. I accept AMEX, Visa or MasterCard.’
Now, before you chalk this down as little more than a quip, consider the very real possibility that this scenario could be coming to a street corner near you. And soon.
The Reserve Bank of Australia announced plans this week to roll out new technology to facilitate the ongoing shift towards a fully digital payment system.
Rather uninventively, it’s been dubbed the New Payment Platform, or NPP.
The NPP will allow you to transfer and receive money instantly. And it won’t matter one jot whether you share the same bank as the person or institution you’re transacting with.
No more hassles involving payee details and BSB numbers, or waiting for the dreaded business days to roll over. All you’ll need is a phone number or email address. With either in hand, you’ll be able to make transactions in split seconds.
It all sounds good in theory. And we imagine it’d work just as well in practice. We only wonder whether the emergence of this new technology will consign cash to the dustbin of history.
The payment paradigm shift is well underway
You won’t be surprised to hear that Australia is well on its way to becoming a cashless society. But it might shock you to learn how far we’ve already come.
ATM withdrawals peaked in 2009–10, and have been falling ever since. Impressively, three out of every four transactions made today use digital ‘tap-and-go’ systems.
We can’t argue with the convenience of digital payment systems. Yet our worry isn’t that Australians are migrating to cashless systems. Rather, it’s the questionable motives behind this push — seemingly intent on eliminating cash altogether — which concern us.
First, this measure will affect consumers and small businesses in equal measure.
Some services will become more expensive. Remember, smaller businesses already have to absorb the costs of surcharges that come with payless systems. That’s already forcing many businesses to pass the costs on to consumers. If they no longer have the option of cash, this will only get worse. It may even push some struggling businesses over the edge.
But there’s a bigger issue at hand here that is all too often overlooked.
Global strategist and former CIA insider Jim Rickards says cashless systems are designed to herd the public into the regulated banking system.
Once everyone is rounded up, so to speak, it gives central banks more room to manoeuvre on monetary policy. As Jim told his subscribers in Strategic Intelligence, central bankers are intent on setting the stage for unencumbered interest rates. This simply means removing any obstacles which allow central banks to manipulate rates beyond existing natural barriers.
As you may have guessed, the number one obstacle standing in the way of unencumbered interest rates is cash.
Eliminating cash would open the door for a whole host of unfettered policies. Commercial banks could raise service fees, freeze accounts and enforce bail-in charges without recourse. These would be impossible to avoid once cash has been eliminated, as you’d have no place to store your money outside of hard assets.
As it happens, the convenience of digital payment systems means policymakers have had to do little to convince the public of its merits. We’ve done all the heavy lifting ourselves. But this convenience is blinding us to the potential pitfalls that lie in wait.
In truth, we’ve already lost the war on cash. There’s no turning back at this point.
Yet, while we may end up as herded cattle, we can avoid being slaughtered.
The end of cash is coming, but it shouldn’t spell the end of your freedom. You owe it to yourself to learn how to escape this banking trap.
). 
