Denaria Europe Launches and Makes the Case for Cash

Denaria Europe (DE) was officially launched on 14 October in Brussels, bringing together organisations from Sweden, Spain, France, Portugal and Denmark to defend the right to pay in cash.

The case for cash

While the pro-cash arguments were well rehearsed for those who support it, a number of interesting points were made, for example:

• In Europe cash has reached the 'now or never' moment.
• Cash is for the silent minorities (old, poor etc.).
• Those arguing for cash need to think about how arguments relate to voters, given that is what motivates politicians. The ECB's SPACE survey found that 62% of people support it, so cash is popular. In addition, there was the comment that 'we all get old'…
• Cash = infrastructure.
• Data is key. While large parts of the decision-making classes are 'blinded by their own privilege from the reality of the rest of the population', data shows the problem.
• What is happening in Australia with the ban on card surcharges reveals cash fulfilling its role as an anchor keeping payments 'honest', ie. where discounts are offered for using cash, which enables merchants to avoid card fees.
• Denmark has had cash acceptance legislation since 1988, but non-compliance is increasing.
• While this may be contentious, there is a sense that governments are wanting to control their citizens more in the face of fragmenting societies and social norms. Should that really be the agenda, cash can be perceived as an obstacle.