London: The rise in internet transactions and the push for digital payments from big brands will soon reduce the use of cash, claimed a senior Bank of England official. Sir Jon Cunliffe, Deputy Governor of the Bank of England, pointed out that more than 85 per cent of the daily transactions in the United Kingdom are done electronically. Sir Cunliffe also demanded that the British government take swift steps to develop a ‘digital pound’ while realizing that the use of cash is declining.
Moreover, the ‘Innovate Finance Global Summit 2023’ has started in London, the capital of the United Kingdom. Speaking at the conference, Sir Cunliffe informed that the use of cash in daily transactions is decreasing. 9 out of 10 people in the United Kingdom use contactless payments. Mobile payment apps are preferred by one-third of citizens. Bank of England’s Deputy Governor said, ‘Cashless transactions are carried out in major shops in most cities of the United Kingdom’. Sir Cunliffe also highlighted on this occasion that digitization in daily life is getting faster and faster.
Meanwhile, Bank of England officials also indicated that the use of cash by the central bank would continue as long as there is a demand for it, although the number of people using cash in transactions is small. Two years ago, Victoria Cleland, director of payments at the Bank of England, claimed that the dominance of cash was over. He also predicted that by 2028, only nine per cent of the total transactions would use cash.
For the past few years, the use of cash has been decreasing in the countries of the European continent and the concept of a ‘Cashless Society’ is being promoted in many countries. More than 90 per cent of transactions are done through digital media in countries like Sweden and Norway. The number of ‘cashless’ transactions is also high in the Netherlands and Finland, indicating that the use of cash in most transactions will be stopped by 2030. A report released last year revealed that the proportion of cash transactions has fallen below 60 per cent even in the European Union member states.
