Who Wins in a Cashless Economy?

Conflict in the Middle East continues to disrupt global shipping routes including the Strait of Hormuz and the Strait of Malacca. China is now turning to Russia for support in developing an alternative trade path: the Northern Sea Route. On 15 August, China sent its first ship on ...  Show more

Just under 20 years ago Kenya pioneered the use of mobile money. Since then, other countries in Africa have carved out a share of the digital market for themselves, from gaming in Morocco to artificial intelligence in Tunisia. But the picture is not the same across the whole cont ...  Show more

It seems we are inexorably headed towards a cashless society. It is not uncommon now for some retailers to even refuse cash payments. What are the consequences of this development? Let's talk about it. 

Ten million people would struggle to cope in a cashless society even though only 17% of payments are not made with notes and coins, the Royal Society of Arts found.

With thousands of bank branch closures in recent years, and access to cash withdrawals under threat, we di ...

It facilitates crime, bribery, and tax evasion -- and yet some governments (including ours) are printing more cash than ever. Other countries, meanwhile, are ditching cash entirely. And if Star Trek is right, we won't have money of any sort in the 24th century.

Hos ...

The global digital-payments shift is more than just a matter of convenience. We examine the <a href="https://www.economist.com/special-report/2023-05-20?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownote ...