The nature of money as a means of exchange is all about evolvement. Starting from the beginning of human existence when all we knew was trade by barter, which seems to be a durable form of exchange until humans found another method with less complexities and a specified unit of exchange compared to trade by barter.
Thinking of it, you would realize that our first means of exchange was decentralized or not controlled by an entity, anyone could easily choose who they which to exchange their goods with, without the involvement of any financial institutions, is that not what P2P is all about. A method such as this is not without its own challenges, which brought about a more centralized means of exchange, to create balance in the trading system.
Compared to trade by barter that was self governed by humans without a centralized authority, money also known as fiat is issued by the government of a state, which means its controlled by a specific entity. Which kind of seems like we gave up our free manner of trading for a more flexible system but centralized, which seems like a small price to pay for a balance financial system and means of trading. What we never realized was the impact of centralized means of exchange, since an entity is in charge of the printing and distribution of fiat, it gives them the right to dictate how it is used and in what manner.
It has even gotten worse in recent times. Governmental agencies now use financial institutions in charge of the management and distribution of fiat to manipulate the people to their own advantage. I mean you would wake up in the morning and realize new set of fees has been added by banks and this kind of changes would be effective immediately without anyone consulting you before implementing the policy on your account. When you think of it, it is your money which means you should have all the right to dictate how it is used but it isn't so.
You go to a bank and you discover that they are dictating the amount of money you can deduct from your own account but then, this so called banks make use of our money behind the scenes to invest in stocks and trade, makes profit and instead of them to add to our money in form of interest based on what they have used our money for, you would be surprised that they would still deduct money from your account, some charges with all kind of labels. What they might have used your money for behind the scene is not known to you because the transaction is not made open to the public. In a way it feels like extortion and this is only made possible because of the centralized nature of fiat.
In order to solve this issue money evolved once again and crypto currency was introduced, Crypto currency being a digital form of money, a product of crypto projects built on blockchain technology, with blockchain technology comes a digital public ledger accessible to everyone. It simply means it brought about a more transparent manner of transaction. With crypto currency comes again the era of decentralisation, giving back to the people the control they once had over their manner of trading. Introducing varieties of digital currency that is not controlled by an entity or institution.
Which means, we humans have made use of different kind of currency to ensure comfortable and efficient trading. Regardless of the evolving nature of many, each method of payment plays a role others can't. Should the government get rid of cash currency? The answer to this is simple, is it necessary? Because both method of payment play different roles. Though it might feel like they overlap each other's usage but they have different unique qualities.
Some of you might think, cash payment is outdated, have you ever been stuck in a restaurant because your bank app is misbehaving? in situation like this, you would wish you had cash with you. Not every area is as developed as we think, how many commuters in rural area accept digital payment? There are people who still find it difficult to make use of digital currency, they trust cash payment more than digital payment.
Getting rid of cash currency will only expose our network inadequacy and the level of financial technology illiteracy. I wouldn't want to get stuck in a place where there is no network and I'm in need of a service or item. Will it affect me, I believe it will. Some of you are not aware how much banks charge for digital payment. Now imagine depending on digital payment only. Though it will aid crypto currency adoption, it will force people to learn about digital currency, not just fiat.
This write-up was inspired by weekly featured content titled Cash or digital in hive learners community.
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