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Within a matter of two weeks, a report was released in Britain on the future of a cashless society, warning that a lack of infrastructure and extensive services could not allow the complete removal of paper money, while the Bank of England also announced the new face of the 50-pound note, computer pioneer and codebreaker Alan Turing, who will be the face on the polymer currency to appear at the end of 2021.
Thus, Britain’s central bank continues to invest in the conventional form of payment, as well as encouraging new technologies and automation for those who need it and can use it, such as young consumers using on-the-go services on their mobile phones.
The first report, the Access to Cash Review, concluded that the system needs to ensure that notes and coins can still be used, calling on the government and regulators to step in to ensure cash remains viable, while essential services, such as utility and council bills, should still allow customers to pay in cash.
Research in Sweden has shown that infrastructure was needed before cash use declined beyond anyone’s control, such as the availability of “smart” ATMs, where consumers and small businesses can deposit cash and cheques with immediate credit of their accounts.
This would ensure that the system would support lower levels of cash use and encourage innovation “to support cash as a viable means of payment for those who want to use it.”
To counter the argument in favour of a paper moneyless-society, NatWest announced a novel service enabling customers to open an account with a selfie, similar to what London-based Metro Bank introduced more than a year ago.
The move removes the need to go into a branch, put identity documents in the post or wait a day or two for the account-opening process to be completed. Instead, the customer provides a selfie and photo ID such as a passport to verify who they are.
This means employing “state-of-the-art” artificial intelligence, real-time biometric checks and authentication methods in order to prevent fraudulent applications. Meanwhile, digital banks Monzo and Starling let people open accounts by recording a short selfie video and providing a photo of a valid ID document.
Back in Cyprus, it is clear that we have a very long way to go before consumers can reach this level of online service, either with banks or even with government, where despite a number of forms being readily available to complete a number of actions, one still has to print out such documents and present them to the relevant department. Then starts the second level of adventure, to check if one government department communicates with another for verification of transactions and, supposedly, to cut down on time wasted and improve on rates of competitiveness, a benchmark where we lag behind even some Third World countries.
For now, we will have to make do with keeping cash under the mattress, as the banks are not considered as trustworthy, while popping into a government or public utility office for the occasional bill or information, also helps ion socialising, as this is where you meet old acquaintances, and sometimes make new friends.
