March 15, 2007

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  NEWS: Brits Still Love Cash (Right Now)

  Following the news that Visa Britain chairman Peter Aycliff had predicted that the nation will have gone virtually cashless sometime in the next decade, comes new research that the forecast may have been a bit premature.
  
  UK-based payments association Apacs concluded that good, old-fashioned cash still ruled, accounting for an estimated 63% of all retail transactions. It seems that a £20 note is most consumers' currency of choice, with the denomination accounting for 66% of all cash dispensed on a daily basis. (As a side note, fans of the £20 withdrawal will be excited to see the redesigned bank note featuring economist Adam Smith. The new currency should be starting to be dispensed in ATM machines by the start of next week.)
  
  Apacs concluded that the majority of consumers visit some sort of cash machine, whether at retail stores, banks, or ATM, at least once on a weekly basis, and that the average withdrawal is over £60. Also, it seems that Americans' fascination with using their credit and/or debit cards for small transactions has not yet made its way across the pond – most Britons still use cash for these purchases.
  
  Of course, contactless technology is still new in the UK, and experts are hesitant to make predictions about how it will be received. But the possibility is there that the convenience of "waving" a card for purchases will provide enough novelty to give plastic the push it needs to dominate cash.
  
  
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