World Future Society

to this day, rudimentary research on abolishing cash, let alone a cost-benefit study, is nonexistent. Aside from local news of an occasional mugging or robbery, few people in the US are aware of the extent and severity of cash crime and how heavily it weighs on the economy. The good news is that, for law-abiding consumers in the US, cash is disappearing. A prediction made 15 years ago by economist Milton Friedman is proving correct; that is, that cash "will die a natural death." The best indicator of where cash is headed is the percentage that it is used at point of sale in comparison with other types of payment. Indeed, the recent surge in debit card usage is not so much a switch from credit cards as it is at the expense of cash and checks. A cash-less future is a policy labeled "radioactive" by some. Enlightened economists around the globe are breaking away from such constraints.