De Nederlandsche Bank: cash must remain in case technology fails

Cash must continue to exist in case the technology fails and electronic payment is not possible. De Nederlandsche Bank advocates this. The number of cash payments has been declining for years and this decrease will accelerate further in the coming years, the regulator believes.

Electronic payment is becoming easier and more common, partly due to the advance of contactless debit cards, but where people have to pay immediately, they must be able to continue to pay in cash, DNB writes. “Of course, this applies in particular to people who do not yet have or cannot use a debit card. But it also applies to people with a visual impairment, to people who use cash in order not to spend too much and to many young people under the fourteen years. Moreover, not being able to pay in cash is also objectionable in situations in which one has a legitimate interest in wanting to remain anonymous.”

The dependence on technology is a major drawback. “It should be borne in mind that the non-functioning of the point-of-sale payment system on a larger scale can have disruptive social effects. It often concerns payments for products that cannot wait to be purchased, such as foodstuffs, or services that have already been purchased, such as at checkout. of a meal already enjoyed.”

The Forum, Social Consultation on Payments, shares DNB’s position that cash payments should in principle remain possible. The MOB contains various social organizations that are involved in payment transactions, such as Thuiswinkel.org and the Consumers’ Association. The Forum has therefore made recommendations for shops and organizations where people can pay. These mean that electronic and cash payments must be possible everywhere, unless there is an important reason not to do so.