I’ve been mindful of the ways companies can track my spending habits, and so have been increasingly keen on using cash and avoiding mobile banking/payment apps like the plague. I realize that this varies by country and might be a bit far out, but the thought does linger in the back of my mind. If current trends continue, how much longer until they take cash and browser-based banking from us? Or will there be a reason those options should continue to exist (and be easily usable) far into the future? And perhaps:
- What else can I, as an individual, do about this?
- Is there a tendency for larger banks or smaller credit unions to push towards mobile-only online banking?
- What does it look like in countries where cashless and mobile payments are the norm?
As much as I despise what it represents, I believe that if physical currency ceases to exist, some virtual unregulated stand in (such as cryptocurrency) would take place to fill the same role for unmonitored transactions.
Let’s call a spade a spade - individuals, organizations, businesses and corrupt officials all want to have a way to have their “special transactions” away from prying eyes, and should one medium be phased out, another shall form, with even less purview from the governments that once issued the currency. That’s too much power to give up.
I think the future will surprise us with a new method of digital obfuscation other than bitcoin et al. Crypto is a bit tainted. We can only look at the tools we have available today to make a guess about the future. My belief is that we will come up with something new, something else that isn’t as speculative and volatile. People don’t want their bribes to be devalued because some people found their long forgotten hard drives with crypto wallets and eff up the exchange rate.