[jimmywanger]

The interesting thing is, this has to be adopted internationally.

If RMB or Euros still exist in paper form, but the USD doesn't, or any combination thereof, the economies will quickly shift to taking foreign currency as a matter of course.

If you're selling tacos or hot dogs on a street corner, you're not really caring what kind of money you're taking in, as long as it's good and honored by the people you owe money to.

Obviously for large transactions, there will be currency controls (and there already are). But for small day to day stuff? Like restaurants and dealing with food suppliers? Or hell, even hiring the neighbor's kid to shovel out snow or mow your lawn.

As long as there's some form of cash, that's what they'll use.

[Scarblac]

In the Netherlands, I use cash for none of those. Well, for young kids. And _some_ street corner food, rarely.

The thing is that once almost everything is cashless, using cash for something becomes a burden. You need to get some from an ATM, pay with it, then you have change to carry with you. I don't have a wallet with space for cash anymore, so it's loose change in pocket, that I probably won't use for weeks. If there is a food stall around that does take cards, I go there.

In fact I'd probably do a bank transfer to the kid's father's account, and let them settle it with the kid's allowance or so.

[jimmywanger]

Sure. In the US, at least where I live, a lot of smaller restaurants don't take cards, as well as a lot of smaller non-chain neighborhood bars.

If you're paying cashless, the credit card processor and company is skimming a small percentage off the tips. With the razor margins in the hospitality/food industry, that 3% adds up to maybe your entire profit margin.

[Scarblac]

In the Netherlands credit cards also take a percentage like that, and that's why they're not accepted everywhere.

But Maestro and VPAY debit cards have a flat fee of something like 5 cents per transaction, less if your company does many.