The GENIUS Act (Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act), is a US federal bill establishing the first comprehensive regulatory framework for the issuance and supervision of payment stablecoins in the US. The legislation introduces a tiered oversight model, codifies prudential standards, and confirms that payment stablecoins are not to be treated as securities or deposit liabilities. It is, therefore, critical legislation with global implications.

Fifth Third Bank are the sixth-largest commercial payments provider in the US by revenue, and they spoke at G+D’s Currency Technology Symposium in July. They have just announced that they are buying DTS Connex, which provides cash management software for multi-location businesses such as retailers, restaurants and healthcare providers.

At G+D’s Currency Technology Symposium in July, one of the discussions centred on how efficiency can be leveraged to build resilience across a wide range of scenarios. Managing the steady state is relatively straightforward with its predictable workflow, regular cash processing volumes within expected parameters, reliable supply chains, sufficient staff etc.

Matt Sykes of the CPT Group in Australia, global experts in cash, payments and money systems, has written a review about whether cash can deliver on its role providing critical redundancy for national payment systems. They want to start a debate about whether the infrastructure that supports cash distribution deliver on this promise given the acute and growing strain it is under. Does a misalignment between policy assumptions and market realities risk rendering cash ineffective as a payment option in a crisis?

European Central Bank (ECB) Executive Board Member Piero Cipollone has confirmed in a speech the ECB’s view that euro cash will remain essential alongside a digital euro, emphasising its role as a stable medium of exchange and store of value.

The CB+DC Conference 2025 will take place from 9-11 September in the Bahamas. Unsurprisingly, the Central Bank of the Bahamas, with the world’s first circulating CBDC, the Sand Dollar, is playing a key role in the conference. It is also celebrating its 50th anniversary.

David Fagleman from Enryo, a financial services consultancy1, published an article in Finextra about a surprising shift in the UK payment landscape, a digital slowdown2. A number of countries have reported a stabilisation in cash usage, the most recent being Canada in its 2024 Methods of Payment Survey3, suggesting that there is a ‘bottom’ for cash usage.

Central banks are exploring ways to make cross-border wholesale payments faster and cheaper using new technologies such as tokenisation. A recent Financial Times article lays out the options.

The Central Bank of Brazil wants to deliver a CBDC, the Drex, in 2026.

A new Japanese survey has found that the most common method for cashless payments is to use a barcode or QR code displayed on a smartphone, with 84.2% of people using one.

Despite predictions of a cashless society, cash remains vital across all age groups. New ECB research reveals older adults prefer cash for transactions, but young adults pay with cash at roughly the average rate and keep cash reserves. The perceived importance of cash is rising for all!

Currency Research’s (CR) regionally focused Cash Cycle Seminars are returning the second half of this year with stops in Bali and Miami. Established in 1995, the Cash Cycle Seminars bring global best practices around commercial cash management, distribution, and circulation to address key issues in regional markets, providing a holistic view of the cash cycle and the challenges and opportunities confronting the entire range of industry stakeholders.

Five big banks in Belgium have joined the European Payments Initiative (EPI) with the intention of rolling out the Wero digital wallet and instant account-to-account (A2A) payment application to customers in the first half of next year.

Mastercard’s Chief Product Officer says stablecoins offer promising attributes like high speed and low costs but lack essential attributes like a seamless user experience and wide distribution to consumers.

ATMIA recently held a webinar with Diebold Nixdorf (DN) looking at the role of ATMs in sustainable banking. Contributors were Helena Mueller, VP Europe, Matt Phillips, Head of Banking, UK & Ireland and Raoul Meichtry, Managing Director, Switzerland.

At May’s Currency Conference the Bank of Thailand’s (BOT) Anak Somkanae, Senior Director, Payment Infrastructure and Services Strategy and Development Department, presented on cash logistics and its significant carbon footprint and. Separately, Montira Pattanakul, Senior Director, Banknote Operations Department took part in panel discussion on the cash product from cradle to grave. These two sessions gave an excellent overview of the BOT’s cash operations.

Despite the rapid rise of digital payments, cash remains a critical pillar of the global financial system, especially in regions where digital infrastructure is lacking or financial inclusion is low. The cash ecosystem is complex, involving central banks, commercial banks, cash-in-transit (CIT) companies, and technology providers. It is also facing mounting pressure to adapt due to infrastructure vulnerabilities, economic misalignments, financial exclusion and a need for better crisis preparedness.

Over 80% of online merchants offer payment by Cash on Delivery (CoD) in markets such as Greece, Bulgaria and Slovakia.

France’s National Payments Committee urges immediate action to secure future payments sovereignty amid rising geopolitical tensions. Cash is crucial for economic resilience, industrial autonomy and national sovereignty.

The news pages and feeds are full of stories about stablecoins at the moment. For example, Citi has recently announced that they are looking to issue their own stablecoins and their CEO, Jane Fraser, said that stablecoin issuance could reach $3.7 trillion by the end of the decade. In the US President Trump has signed into law the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act to establish a regulatory framework for ‘payment’ stablecoin issuers.