Will we fully embrace a cashless system? Kensington St. eateries no longer taking cash

scrimshaw on 06/11/2015 - 14:50

http://www.news.com.au/finance/business/sydney-street-could-…

Kensington St, in Chippendale, could be on the verge of a retail revolution — permanently banning payments in notes and coins by going fully cashless.

Australia is already a world leader in embracing new ways to pay.

And with innovative technologies, such as Apple Pay just around the corner, it’s likely more people will find retailers turning their nose up at notes.

Cash began to get the axe on Kensington St in August with the opening of a new strip of eateries. As customers headed to Kopi-Tiam Spice Alley, which has turned a row of former back gardens into an Asian style hawker food market, they were confronted with signs declaring only tap and go cards would be accepted.

Any thoughts on this? Do you trust contactless payments in general? Anyone paranoid enough to damage their ATM cards to disable the NFC module?

I work retail and I still have a lot of rich, wealthy customers (in most cases mainland Chinese background) insisting on paying cash. Even for big ticket items totalling $500 or more, they still pay cash even though they could be earning points on their AMEX / VISA.

Poll Options

  • 288
    Yes! Cashless payments are the future
  • 80
    Nope! Cash is King and is here to stay
  • 7
    Maybe Yes, I would go Cashless if it were more secure
  • 26
    Call the Bikies
Financial

Comments

      • altomic on 07/11/2015 - 17:44

        also if you are a student some banks will not charge fees. e.g. bankwest.

        • Gina Rinehart on 09/11/2015 - 22:17

          Bankwest, ANZ, CBA, probably all the other major banks too..

  • Baysew on 07/11/2015 - 11:52
    +3

    Those free accounts are apparently still available - it's a bit of work to find them

    No work at all

    NAB

    No $2k deposit requirement, comes with Visa debit card. (And no "fees for checking balances, withdrawing, depositing, using the counter if you go over the ~ 5 transactions "allowed" during the month")

    Also look at Ozbargain favs - ING & Citibank.

    • serpserpserp on 07/11/2015 - 13:36

      I think Westpac has a povo account as mentioned above too.

  • [Deactivated] on 07/11/2015 - 12:11

    Anyone paranoid enough to damage their ATM cards to disable the NFC module?

    I always do this by cutting through the wire at the top edge of most cc cards.
    Happy to use a pin#.

    If we do go cashless, no doubt new coin will be created out of necessity.

    I also mark over the signature (allowed), and scratch out the 3digit cvc. Not needed once it's recorded.

  • Cluster on 07/11/2015 - 14:01
    +13

    There is only one problem with a cashless society: it's easy for a government to devalue or confiscate your money remotely, and there's nothing you can do about it. While it's very unlikely to occur in Australia, there have been many examples from other countries in the past.

    Greece 2015: You cannot access the money in your account. Limits on withdrawals to 100 Euros per day. There was a flight to cash as people knew the government could freeze or confiscate funds from electronic accounts at any time.

    Cyprus 2013: Do you have a balance over 100k Euros? No you don't, not any more, if it was kept electronically at a bank.

    Upcoming interesting events:

    Sweden 2015/2016: -0.35% official interest rates. If you keep your savings in a bank you literally pay the bank interest. Will be very interesting to see whether cash transactions are limited as it makes sense to keep money at home rather than at a bank.

    I won't get into the area of Redenomination and hyperinflation, as that affects electronic accounts and cash equally. Only way to escape redenomination is through holding physical assets.

    • Charity on 07/11/2015 - 14:41
      +12

      "that will never happen to us"
      "that was in another country / history is boring"
      "what just happened?"
      "why didn't someone warn us?"
      "someone else should have protected us"
      "oh well, too young/old to change my ways"

    • inherentchoice on 10/11/2015 - 23:04

      it's easy for a government to devalue or confiscate your money remotely

      Zimbabwe has this problem even though they don't have a cashless society.

      Even before World War II Germany had massive inflation problems, and in a way it contributed to Hitler being elected.

  • [Deactivated] on 07/11/2015 - 14:23

    As opposed to Newtown which has restaurants that only accept cash. lololol

  • cowiie on 07/11/2015 - 14:40
    +11

    The bikies option is overused and annoying to see.

  • Diji1 on 07/11/2015 - 15:50
    +3

    If we ever do go cashless make no mistake about it the losers are the consumers, that's me and you.

    One of the main reasons retailers LOVE credit/debit POS and contactless payments is that people spend more compared to when they use cash.

    This is another of those 100% automatic, unconscious and irrational behaviours that affects us all to varying degrees. This means that you cannot tell whether you have been affected or not so the only sane option is to follow what the evidence shows and assume you are affected.

    It's thought that this happens due to the consumer not experiencing a physical loss of property (cash).

    • GameChanger on 07/11/2015 - 16:18

      Spot on!

    • charzy on 07/11/2015 - 16:33

      Sounds true. I don't hesitate spending $500 on a new vacuum cleaner when I pay with my amex, but if I was counting out 10 x $50 notes, I'd question myself if I REALLY need to buy it.

      On another branch, IMO if the government wants to catch the tax evaders a bit better, they should make eft/cc payments as compulsory legal tender in all businesses but also taking on the bank cost of supplying the service rather than the business. The taxman gets his tax, the business gets their business, and the banks get their fees.

    • kryptoz on 07/11/2015 - 23:47

      True — this same psychology is used very effectively with electronic poker machines. Paywave/PayPass is effectively making every transaction into an unconscious decision, I wonder if it may one day be an addiction too… Also, the 'cash'ier has more opportunity to overcharge you and get away with it — the second or three it takes for a swipe transaction is not always enough to mentally add up your bill, compared with finding and counting notes and coins in your wallet, which where I regularly discover they have made an error (either deliberate or not, but most often in their favour).

    • SlickMick on 08/11/2015 - 12:02
      -1

      Not here. If I pay-wave for my stamp, I've got 70c less paying off my home loan. If I carry cash, for starters I have $50 not paying off my home loan. Breaking it for that stamp, $4.30 will go to some charity because I don't want coins jiggling around in my pocket, the $5 will go on some office fundraiser whereas I'd usually say sorry, no cash.
      So a 70c stamp costs $10 with cash!
      And those $20s would be burning a hole in my wallet too.

  • [Deactivated] on 07/11/2015 - 18:05
    +2

    What bothers me about credit cards is still that a few companies are taking an unnecessary percentage of almost all spending globally. Seems like mega-greedy middleman stuff.

  • jeozb on 07/11/2015 - 18:17
    +4

    I use cards + electronic transfer whenever possible because:
    - carrying lots of cash is kinda dangerous - when you lose your wallet, you lose a lot
    - coins in particular can be annoying to handle, and keeping a lot of them in a typical wallet can deteriorate the wallet
    - you can pay exact amounts, say, paying $17.85 is annoying with cash but trivial electronically
    - contactless payments are really fast, and that can't be done with paper - PayPass can help to clear that Woolies self payment queue
    - my bank (I'm with CommBank) should be able to refund unauthorized transactions, given that I take proper care of my card

    But, with the current state of technology in 2015, in terms of the reliability and cost of electronic payments, I always keep some limited amount of cash in my wallet at all times - we all know how CommBank's system can suddenly go down and fail to process electronic payments. Cash saved me from some awkward moments on the Subway cashier when CommBank was glitching some time ago. Some cheap eats will not accept cards either, and some outlets have a minimum spend for cards.

    So really, as of 2015, I guess the best way (at least for me) is to try to pay electronically first, and if not possible then use cash as the fallback.

    Oh btw, with regards to outlets being "completely cashless" - I'm against this one (at least, not for the next few years). Not accepting cash will prevent tourists and young children with no bank accounts from being able to buy your food and products easily. What's the point of that? I would be disappointed if I was visiting another country, order food and then realize that I have to pay by card. Travel cards aren't very consumer-friendly at the moment - at least, they can actually make cash look simpler by comparison.

    • noyesmaybeok on 07/11/2015 - 19:14
      +2

      Yes true. We flew to London on a Saturday afternoon. You pay cash for the train at the Airport. We just walked ~2km to our place from the nearest station, it's a good way to get a quick feel for the area, see what shops are around and so forth.

      Sunday morning wanted to go to the city… couldn't. Had to walk ~3km into the city because no stores were open, and you can't pay cash for a bus. Total PITA. MORE annoyingly, about half way we did find two 24/7 stores, however the Oyster system was down!

      It's not that the technology is the problem, it's more that it's usually poorly implemented. For example, there's apparently thousands of places to buy Oyster cards. Great! But, most corner stores are positioned in high traffic areas such as right near a train station where you can buy tickets anyway… so there's plenty of coverage gaps.

      I've also had cards declined before for "no reason" - for whatever reason they wouldn't work at that store, at the time, whatever - cash was great there too.

      Although I do enjoy using card there are some problems which can only be solved by cash.

    • kryptoz on 07/11/2015 - 23:52
      -1

      Tourists and children can go to a supermarket/convenience store/etc and exchange their cash for an equivalent value debit card, albeit they are not without their technical problems (eg. randomly failing, not allowing refunds or cancelled transactions).

  • garetz on 07/11/2015 - 18:34
    -2

    Its actually illegal to refuse cash currency as it is legal tender. They could lose their license to operate as a business.

    • scrimshaw on 07/11/2015 - 18:42
      +2

      No it's not. Let's say you are on an airplane and want to buy stuff while on board. If the Airline company states: "Card payments only" you have two choices — take your business elsewhere or pay using your card.

      Similarly, let's say you have a bag of 5 and 10 cent coins totalling $500 dollars. You go a restaurant, buy a pizza and plop the whole bag on the table. The business can choose to say they cannot accept that cash payment (because you're obviously causing a lot of problems for them)

      QUOTE by RBA:

      It is the Reserve Bank of Australia’s understanding that, although Australian currency has legal tender status, it does not necessarily have to be used in transactions and that refusal to accept payment in legal tender banknotes and coins is not unlawful.

      • garetz on 08/11/2015 - 04:56
        -1

        There is obviously exceptions, what you listed are specific circumstances that can limit your ability to pay in cash currency. However if you go into a business, and purchase an item or service, you go to pay with legal tender within the restrictions, and they refuse you, they are breaking the law.

        The reserve bank is not a legal institution, it isn't even a governmental institution, they cannot mandate LAW in any way. Whatever the reserve bank of Australia "understands" as if an institution can understand anything, is irrelevant.

        • [Deactivated] on 08/11/2015 - 12:42
          +2

          You can't purchase goods without paying for them first. If they choose not to sell the item to you on their terms (e.g. not accept cash), you do not have the right to purchase it.

          If a provider of goods or services specifies other means of payment prior to the contract, then there is usually no obligation for legal tender to be accepted as payment.

          http://banknotes.rba.gov.au/legal/legal-tender/

          As for the reserve bank, they are a statutory authority and thus are part of the government.

          http://www.rba.gov.au/about-rba/our-role.html

          The role and functions of the Reserve Bank are underpinned by various pieces of legislation. The Bank is a statutory authority, established by an Act of Parliament, the Reserve Bank Act 1959, which gives it specific powers and obligations

          Pg 634: http://www.finance.gov.au/sites/default/files/LOGB2009.pdf

        • Thrawn on 08/11/2015 - 14:29
          +1

          Legal tender is cash that is in sensible denominations (as in, no excessive amount of 5c coins)

          The key point is that legal tender must be accepted for a repayment of debt unless there's a specific contract established beforehand otherwise. So if someone sits at a restaurant, orders food, eats it, then wants to pay cash.. you can't realistically reject it. You can argue that the customer accepted a contract of non-cash payment, but it would in practice be very difficult to prove.

          Easier to prove in things like housing rental contracts though.

  • [Deactivated] on 07/11/2015 - 20:02

    I still have a atm card that has no paywae and uses the good old swiper technology.

    • gimli on 07/11/2015 - 21:59

      Csb

    • StalkingIbis on 07/11/2015 - 22:04
      +6

      you monster

      • [Deactivated] on 08/11/2015 - 00:53

        Yeh sales staff think that when I say sqipe only… Feel like I have taken so much time off their lives.

        • noyesmaybeok on 10/11/2015 - 03:21

          I bet you don't even pre-swipe… enemy #1 at woolworths.

          "no no love, I'll finish putting the groceries in the cart, then I'll fumble around for 5 minutes trying to find a card to use and forget my PIN".

        • [Deactivated] on 10/11/2015 - 14:51

          @rochow: don't forget about the rewards card… Cancel that swipe and start all over again. Haaha.

          Oh yeh and have kids running around too.

  • FW190 on 07/11/2015 - 22:09

    I work retail and I still have a lot of rich, wealthy customers (in most cases mainland Chinese background) insisting on paying cash. Even for big ticket items totalling $500 or more

    well it is a Chinese "thing" where they don't believe in cards/credit rating, a person from a Western background would probably be proud to show off their diamond/black class credit cards, but for the Chinese, they get their e-peen boost by dropping a lot of cash over the counter.

    If you want to believe the urban legends, supposedly in the current property boom, Chinese buyers are using cash to buy houses worth million's of $$$$, although that is probably more for money laundering purpose then e-peen.

    back on topic - restaurants are preferring cards over cash? I guess I should keep an eye out for flying pigs too…………

  • [Deactivated] on 07/11/2015 - 23:16
    +4

    Seems like a lame publicity stunt. You're a business, you don't turn down payment regardless of form unless you're an idiot.

    • fruit on 09/11/2015 - 14:52

      Tell that to all the Sushi restaurants

    • noyesmaybeok on 10/11/2015 - 03:23

      Here's some Chinese Yuan.
      Here's a cheque for $25.
      I want to put this $2 charge on CC will will cost you 50 odds cents.

      Plenty of reasons to not accept just any form of payment.

      • [Deactivated] on 10/11/2015 - 13:09
        +1

        Reasonable form. Don't be a smart arse. How often would someone walk into an Australian store and offer the cashier Rubles?

        These businesses are rejecting cash payments to look trendy. It's lame & I have a feeling it won't last.

  • mmd on 07/11/2015 - 23:39

    Like jeozb above, you lose your wallet then you're down alot.
    I find I'm willing to spend more, if I have a wad of cash in my wallet.
    I keep $50 max in my wallet to avoid overspending.
    Use credit cards for points, EFTPOS if the shop has a CC surcharge. Cash for shops who accepts no other forms.

  • SlickMick on 08/11/2015 - 01:16
    +1

    If places I shop went cashless, I wouldn't notice.

    Instead of charging a credit-card surcharge, they should be a much bigger surcharge for cash - having to count it, take it to bank, have it counted again, have a truck come and pick it up, and all the security required all along the way.
    …unless of course that cash is going straight into pockets??
    Maybe the tax office should be cracking down on businesses that accept cash??

  • NBAD25 on 08/11/2015 - 08:43
    +2

    Does that mean they're acception BitCoin now too?

    Although I piss on 'Cash Only' stores' ashes; I recognise the importance of cash in the health of our society and economy overall.

    I wonder if they will charge me an Amex fee for my $4 purchase?

  • AMLagonda on 08/11/2015 - 13:24

    I will always accept Cash as a small business ;) we all know what a small business does with cash, it's how they survive in saying that I will happily accept EFTPOS.

    I've bought most items with cash even large items like our cars and garage/shed, but yes most people nearly fall over when you wave around cash lol most people
    nowadays look like they haven't seen it before.

  • Lucky13 on 08/11/2015 - 15:17

    I noticed you talked about security above. Ive heard paying with ur phone via NFC is hackable thats why I havent bothered trying it

    • scrimshaw on 08/11/2015 - 15:28
      +1

      NFC is prone to man in the middle attacks. If a hacker wishes to steal information he'd have to install something that can intercept the data as the information is being processed by the terminal. It'd be something similar to credit card skimming.

      Many terminals now have anti tamper mechanisms that render it useless if it is opened (see this tear down of an Eftpos terminal http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tCgtTPwlDSo) but a very determined criminal could one day crack it's security and reprogram it to do other stuff.

    • noyesmaybeok on 10/11/2015 - 03:24
      +1

      Don't worry, humans are still far more stupid then machines. If you want to hack pretty much anything you social engineer a solution, much easier than trying to brute force hack your way in.

      Always amusing to see the amount of people who fail the "This is IT, please email us your password" tests, let alone anything more sophisticated.

  • snook on 08/11/2015 - 22:38

    We can't be forced to go cashless unless they absorb those extra cc fees - like Aldi charges

    • fruit on 09/11/2015 - 14:52
      +2

      ING Everyday 2% cash back

      • snook on 09/11/2015 - 23:16

        Deposit your pay of $1,000+ each month and you'll get 2% cash back on Visa payWave purchases under $100 in Australia

        Only under $100. Have to be aware of what card you are using for what all the time …

        • jubified on 12/11/2015 - 11:20

          You can only use paywave for purchases under 100.. else you use swipe or chip.

  • freakatronic on 08/11/2015 - 23:11

    And then, after all the sheep have given their privacy away for what the government will call "safety", any transaction not approved by the government will be viewed as sedition.

  • [Deactivated] on 09/11/2015 - 05:54

    I've got 7kg of 5c coins in my car..

    (profanity) 5c coins are so pointless

    • Charity on 09/11/2015 - 11:02

      most banks have coin counters that are free to use

    • fruit on 09/11/2015 - 14:53

      why?

      • [Deactivated] on 09/11/2015 - 15:47
        +1

        normally leftover change from the past 10 odd years from drive-thrus or change i have been given in shops, all of the other useful money like 10c-$2 have been used for parking meters..

        just wish there was an option for card at all locations, so frustrating having to pay for a parking meter with physical money.. my city is so backwards

  • CCDee on 09/11/2015 - 07:08

    What if I want to sell my used car to a stranger?

    The advantage to cash/bank cheque is that it can be physically exchanged.

    I'd find it difficult to rely on them showing me an EFT confirmation.

    • Olokun on 09/11/2015 - 08:02

      There are plans for bank to bank transfer to be instant… So you will be able to check your account on the spot.

    • fruit on 09/11/2015 - 14:53

      Barer bonds?

    • SlickMick on 09/11/2015 - 16:54

      lol what's hard about checking that the cash is in your account then signing the transfer papers and handing over keys?

      No way I'd be swapping a car for a briefcase of cash - his mates will be waiting for you at the bus stop.

  • MonocleMoose on 09/11/2015 - 07:44
    +1

    How would you feel about a cashless society where there are negative interest rates on your account - so you actually lose money when you have it in your account? That's what's happening in Sweden and Denmark.

    Cashless may be convenient but it is also a system of control by companies and governments. They will know everything you do. I don't think completely cashless is an idea that fits in very well with ideas of free movement, free society.

    • SlickMick on 09/11/2015 - 16:57
      +1

      the big banks used to, and perhaps still do, try to charge for transactions accounts, but I think you'll always find one for free.
      Personally, my money is paying off my home, not trying to earn interest.

      ps. I think the days of privacy are long gone.

  • peterpeterpumpkin on 09/11/2015 - 09:51

    Do these cashless restaurants allow bill splitting? Australia already lags in that department.

    • scrimshaw on 09/11/2015 - 13:33

      The Eftpos system in my store allows for multiple cards, and this is a very old system that runs on Windows Xp. I don't see why a restaurant couldn't have a similar point of sales software that allows for the use of different cards in one transaction.

      • [Deactivated] on 09/11/2015 - 15:54

        If the system is running win XP it's not actually that old at all.. pretty modern by Australian standards :P

      • SlickMick on 09/11/2015 - 17:18

        I can't imagine a system that can't cater for multiple payments?? Even the most basic need to cater for a gift-card and cash for the balance, for example.
        I don't think it's a lack of technology that makes restaurants disallow split bills. They wear a risk that the final payer might not want to pick up the payment for missed drinks and entrees - that's the only excuse I can imagine. I reckon they should just make that a condition of split bills.

        My daughter used to be a waitress, and she reckons that if the system doesn't cater for split bills, they simply split off each payer to a separate table at payment time.

        Personally, if they warn before I eat, I wouldn't eat there and if they spring it as a surprise after eating I'd make a scene. Unfortunately, my friends don't see it that way so we go off to we play that stupid atm and cash-swapping game that makes me prefer the pay-before-you-eat places.

  • FirstWizard on 09/11/2015 - 12:25

    I love going cashless, the only problem I see is for overseas visitors.
    If you're just visiting for a week, it might be advantageous to just pay the one time ATM fee and get cash for day to day expenses rather than paying an international transaction fee for every card payment. (not everyone has a 28 degrees equivalent card ;)

    • chillin222 on 09/11/2015 - 20:41

      This is a myth. ATMs are a flat fee PLUS the international transaction fee. So using an ATM overseas is always a bad idea.

      • FirstWizard on 10/11/2015 - 13:31

        Well my US account comes with an visa card that reimburses ATM fees anywhere in the world(and no international transaction fee), But has a POS fee for point of sale transactions outside of US.

        • echineon on 11/11/2015 - 23:32

          What bank is it? I do some freelance and get paid by paypal but this seems like a better idea plus I have relative in the State.

        • FirstWizard on 12/11/2015 - 11:40
          +1

          @echineon:

          Fidelity Investments Cash management account. You can open an account as long as you maintain a valid US address and a Social(I'm not sure if SSN was mandatory, but I remember providing mine). Make sure do the correct Tax forms (W-8BEN if I recall correctly) to avoid IRS problems.

  • dbun1 on 09/11/2015 - 16:43

    If we are going to move more and more towards a cashless society, then stores need to be on board and not impose 'minimum spends' or surcharges for CC use - both of which are technically a breach of some merchant agreements.

  • petey on 09/11/2015 - 16:53

    We can never be cashless as it limits what we can do with our second hand goods. Think about things like gumtree and ebay when some items are pick up only.

    • SlickMick on 09/11/2015 - 17:29

      I expect we'll eventually get to a stage where it will be too risky for pickup only sales. You'll sell your stuff through 3rd parties like a Tender Centre or auction house.

      I think cashless will win. I've been working towards it for years. My latest wallet has no provision for cash.

      My tennis-court hire is my final obstacle. I might have to look at an electronic payment solution for him. I'd be quite happy to pay $20 electronically rather than go to an atm to withdraw $20 to get $3 change.

      Once small businesses start accepting electronic payments and they realise they have to do likewise to keep up, I don't see cash lasting much longer.

  • p1 ama on 09/11/2015 - 21:54

    The first step to moving towards cashless is instantaneous payments. It's ridiculous that in this day and age, bank transfers take an earth to process. It might not be a problem for most people, but just the other day, I've encountered this situation. I was out with a friend of mine who wanted to purchase a couple of things but had no money left in his daily account (and he didn't want to draw out of his interest account, because he'd lose his interest for the month), so I offered to lend him $50.

    I would have loved for me to have just been able to transfer it to him and for him to have gotten it instantaneously, then he could have just used it as kept on his card, but that takes too long. So I just walked over to an ATM, withdrew $50 and gave it to him. Cash is instantaneous, electronic transfers are not. That's a big, big reason for why cash is so popular and easy.

    • noyesmaybeok on 10/11/2015 - 03:26

      Overnight on the most part. Only when some banks want to sham 7 day CC turnarounds and so forth does it take longer.

      It makes sense though. It's not viable to send billions of dollars around the place, just wait until business is shut for the day and transfer the balance between banks.

      • p1 ama on 10/11/2015 - 13:01

        Overnight on the most part.

        Yes, but overnight sometimes might not be good enough, especially when cash is instant.

        It makes sense though. It's not viable to send billions of dollars around the place, just wait until business is shut for the day and transfer the balance between banks.

        I know how the system works, and I'm not saying it doesn't make sense. However, instantaneous money is one of the major benefits to cash and is one of the reasons why cash is still in use.

  • MementoMori on 10/11/2015 - 09:21
    +3

    It's always disguised as something to help, but it's really about control… you can't control, track and manipulate money in physical form, only in digital form - that's the real reason.

    "The move to a cashless society won’t happen overnight. Instead, it is being implemented very slowly and systematically in a series of incremental steps. All over the planet, governments are starting to place restrictions on the use of cash for security reasons. As citizens, we are being told that this is being done to thwart criminals, terrorists, drug runners, money launderers and tax evaders. Other forms of payment are much easier for governments to track, and so they very much prefer them. But we are rapidly getting to the point where the use of cash is considered to be a “suspicious activity” all by itself."

    http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-03-23/fighting-war-terror…

    https://www.sovereignman.com/trends/justice-department-rolls…

  • team teri on 10/11/2015 - 10:52

    I fondly remember a few times when I paid large amounts in cash. The looks on the vendor's faces were priceless.

    One was the final instalment when I built my house: all progress payments were fine by regular cheque, but to hand over the keys on the spot they demanded a bank cheque or cash. Well, cash it was, I wasn't going to pay $10 in fees to my bank…

    Same when I bought my car. The car dealer was less surprised than the builder, still took them a while to count.

    • smpantsonfire on 10/11/2015 - 14:01

      I hate how the bank thinks you are a criminal though for moving around that much cash.

  • PTSD on 10/11/2015 - 11:22

    It's plausible that eventually we will become a totally cashless society, but it wouldn't happen for a long time; it's possibly 2-3 generations away yet. What is plausible in the next 10 years is that the volume of cashless payments overtakes cash payments.

    • inherentchoice on 10/11/2015 - 23:18

      What makes you think it hasn't already? Surely nearly anywhere that takes eftpos has more card than cash transactions. Even vending machines these days.

  • [Deactivated] on 10/11/2015 - 15:59

    I hate cashless. HATE!!! I pulled out my wallet out to pay for something at WW, and the terminal automatically took the money from the WRONG card - the payment processed and said OK before I'd even inserted a card. Cashless stinks!

    • EnALup on 10/11/2015 - 19:31

      Well, not sure why you would put your wallet to kiss the machine. It works only if it is few cms away. I have multiple cards and never happened to me.
      or
      Wrap your cards in aluminium foil
      or
      Get the wallet with foils to avoid such transactions

      as this feature is going to stay.

      • inherentchoice on 10/11/2015 - 23:22

        You can get wallets with RFID protection these days. In any case I thought that having two or more NFC cards means you have to take one out of the wallet to tap it as they interfere with each other.

      • [Deactivated] on 11/11/2015 - 02:38

        It wasn't anywhere near the terminal. It was in my hand, and I was pulling the card out that I wanted to INSERT into the eftpos terminal - and it happened automatically - with no requirement to confirm, no way to cancel. It stinks.

  • ITveteran on 10/11/2015 - 16:09
    +1

    This is a great opportunity to run a business allowing both electronic and cash payments, just at the corner neighbor to the street. You'll be almost guaranteed having better business than the others around.

  • illumination on 11/11/2015 - 10:24

    In terms of the food there, it is actually not bad.. and reasonably priced too. Portion size a little small in my opinion though.

  • nrg2010 on 11/11/2015 - 11:19

    You ain't gonna get much done if you don't carry cash around Crescent Head/Port Macquarie. Nearly missed the ferry yesterday as I didn't have any cash

  • onlyletters on 11/11/2015 - 11:54

    Problem with cashless is that it relies on a stable internet connection and most places don't have any internet connection redundancy setup as a failover. I bet you can guess what happens when their internet is down.. the shop can no longer trade.

    • illumination on 11/11/2015 - 11:56

      That's cool. Restaurant can still cook for me though. Free food!!!!!

      • onlyletters on 11/11/2015 - 11:57

        The doors will be closed. You can't leave until you pay lol

        • illumination on 11/11/2015 - 12:01

          Sorry can't pay your terminal is down..
          leg it!!

        • onlyletters on 11/11/2015 - 12:08

          @illumination: and then they bring out the old click clack machine for an offline transaction without knowing if you have money on your card, possibly putting you in the red.

  • Aneurism on 11/11/2015 - 14:32

    I wonder how this works for countries that are heavily dependant on tipping

    • hellbound on 11/11/2015 - 15:55
      +1

      In coffee shops in the USA they have a touchscreen as part of the EFTPOS and it prompts you to choose a tipping amount before you can use your card.

      • Aneurism on 11/11/2015 - 17:05

        Shows you how much travel i do :)

      • dbun1 on 11/11/2015 - 20:42

        yep and some terminals in Aus have it too

  • sintro on 12/11/2015 - 23:06

    Watch this: https://youtu.be/iFDe5kUUyT0
    You are about to learn one of the biggest secrets in the history of the world… it's a secret that has huge effects for everyone who lives on this planet. Most people can feel deep down that something isn't quite right with the world economy, but few know what it is.

    Gone are the days where a family can survive on just one paycheck… every day it seems that things are more and more out of control, yet only one in a million understand why. You are about to discover the system that is ultimately responsible for most of the inequality in our world today.

    The powers that be DO NOT want you to know about this, as this system is what has kept them at the top of the financial food-chain for the last 100 years.

    Learning this will change your life, because it will change the choices that you make. If enough people learn it, it will change the world… because it will change the system .

    For this is the biggest Hidden Secret Of Money.

    Never in human history have so many been plundered by so few, and it's all accomplished through this… The Biggest Scam In The History Of Mankind.

  • sintro on 13/11/2015 - 00:52

    Once the government is able to delete your cash in a nanosecond, your opinion will follow. Elimination of cash will lead to eternal tyranny…

    http://wolfstreet.com/2015/11/07/first-they-came-for-the-pen…

    The New Cost of Doing Business

    An oft-overlooked benefit of cash transactions is that there is no intermediary. One party pays the other party in mutually accepted currency and not a single middleman gets to wet his beak.

    In a cashless society there will be nothing stopping banks or other financial mediators from taking a small piece of every single transaction. They would also be able to use – and potentially abuse – the massive deposits of data they collect on their customers’ payment behavior. This information is of huge interest and value to retail marketing departments, other financial institutions, insurance companies, governments, secret services, and a host of other organizations.

    Another very important perk of cash is that it significantly limits central banks’ ability to continue conducting arguably the greatest financial heist of the modern age, i.e., negative interest rate policy (NIRP). The only way that central banks can maintain negative interest rates ad infinitum is by abolishing cash altogether, as the Bank of England chief economist Andrew Hadlaine all but admitted. As long as cash exists, there’s no way of preventing depositors from doing the logical thing – i.e. taking their money out of the bank and parking it where the erosive effects of NIRP can’t reach it.

    So in order to save a financial system that is morally beyond the pale and stopped serving the basic needs of the real economy a long time ago, governments and central banks must do away with the last remaining thing that gives people a small semblance of privacy, anonymity, and personal freedom in their increasingly controlled and surveyed lives.

    The biggest tragedy of all is that the governments and banks’ strongest ally in their War on Cash is the general public itself. As long as people continue to abandon the use of cash, for the sake of a few minor gains in convenience, the war on cash is already won.

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