By Lewis Crompton, personal finance expert and trading coach, founder of STARtrading
There are shouts from those who are considered to be wearing tin foil hats that the governments of the world are attempting to shift us into a cashless society.
Why would they want that? The answer is control of the economy and the ability to track your income and expenses to the last cent.
These cries of “control” and limitations on basic human freedoms may seem trivial to some but are a large reason why the electronic money, the crypto market has exploded, and also, why it was conceived. The desire to shift away from trackable, traceable and taxable money vehicles that allow autonomy, anonymity and authority.
Not always used positively, historically crypto has been linked to the funding of nefarious activities by its private nature.
The reality is that crypto currencies and the block chain hold greater levels of data on the journey of its usage within the micro-economy it is used in.
Merge crypto currency with government and you get full control. Something in recent years we have seen governments around the world looking to create and establish under the guise of modernisation.
Let alone the move to quicker forms of payment with contactless and the ability to store money online in wallets. Or even, to use wallets to take crypto assets entirely out of the market. Making it possible for large position holders to fake demand and withhold assets from the open market.
What does this do to the everyday person. Well, not just yet are everyday people using cashless, electronic wallets, but you will be hard pressed to find anybody, who is not using touchless options. Whether that be google or apple pay or simply tapping their physical card in exchange for goods and services.
The studies are in, and show that people are more likely to spend more money when they are given the ability to tap. Why, instant gratification and less friction in the buying process. By friction, what we really mean is thought. There is less thought going on between the consumer and the goods or services they are investing in.
This means that we are continuing to see growth in personal debt, buyers regret and yes, that impact social mobility and the ability to make intentional choices that will enable citizens to build financial peace. A right every human being should have.
