Thanks to debit and credit cards along with digital currency such as Bitcoin, and mobile wallets like PayPal, Apple Pay, and Google Wallet, there has been a decreasing need to use actual physical cash to pay for your purchases. However there are some places in which cash is still king but this is something the government of Denmark is hoping to change.
According to a report from Reuters, the Danish government has recently proposed a change in which select retailers can opt out of cash transactions in a bid to move them into a cashless economy. Starting 2016, businesses such as clothing retailers, gas stations, and restaurants will no longer be legally-bound to accept cash as payment, meaning that they could turn customers away if they can’t pay electronically.
This is rather ironic given that as it stands in certain markets, there are retailers who are demanding cash-only and will turn away customers with more “advanced” means of payment. It is expected that this proposal will not meet much resistance as the country uses credit and debit cards for all sorts of purchases, ranging from big to as small as buying a pack of gum.
Of course there are some concerns regarding fraud as over in Sweden, fraud cases involving digital payments have doubled in the past decade, although Denmark is hoping that the use of NemID, a form of digital signature, will prevent that from happening.
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