The Idea of Being Cashless in 2021
If anything has taught me about change, it’s the year 2020. With the number of different events that happen in just that one year, it’s going to be the year that will go down big on the history books.
The mother of them all? Covid-19. This disease changes the way the world looks at each other; literally. It changes the way I interact with strangers. I get paranoid about strangers who are maskless. I became a super-introvert overnight if that’s even a correct term for it. But the fact that life still has to go on also means that I need to interact with others when it comes down to paying for my everyday needs through paper notes or coins.
So this was when the idea of going digital with my money slowly seeps in. Now I’ve always been doubtful about digital monies. So this idea isn’t new-new to me, it’s always just been that idea that sits at the back of my mind. I’ve heard stories about people losing their hard earn cash through being hacked. And hacking is a very real deal, even with today’s top of the line securities. So that’s why I’ve mostly kept my payments for everyday needs offline, traditional paper notes, or coins.
Then it started, the pandemic.
Being an utter infectious disease, the sound of not touching another’s paper note is a great idea! No doubt part of it was also because the Malaysian government who’s also pushing the digital monies initiative. So why not try I thought.
There are namely a few popular ones in this country; Boost and Touch N’ Go. I’ll probably go into details about them in another titled article but generally, they all give rewards like cash backs and discounts with some small twist of numbers and percentages to differentiate themselves. Though I must say that Boost does have better events going on while Touch N’ Go barely has much.
The more I use my digital wallet the better I understand as to why this tech makes sense, even more so with the pandemic around. I’m able to keep physical interaction to a minimum like this when paying for items. Also, I do want to add that it helped me speed up the process of payments as well, given that you have enough in your digital wallet before approaching the counter.
What’s More?
Other than paying for my groceries, the ability to pay for my bills and food are awesome additions. Think of them as like the middleman. Adding some funds in from your bank accounts and then from there pay the bills!
The wallet events are a point that I have made earlier that appear in these digital wallets. They range from filling up checklists, reaching a certain goal and daily tasks.
This does gamify the way you handle your money. Want to fill that checklist up? Maybe buy a few more items! Is it a bad thing? A good thing? Quite subjective I would say. A little self restrain does go a long way in this case.
My worries
There’s a saying that if you don’t see the numbers, you won’t be worried — something along that line. We don’t get to physically see our cash leaving our wallets. Thus dampening the effect that there’s real value in numbers that are leaving your bank account. Though, isn’t as bad as something like paying with your credit card.
Might I add hacking is a very real deal as well?
What I hope to see soon
A good degree of security should be one of the top priorities for the fintech companies behind these wallets. Though I’m quite sold on this cashless idea, at times doubt still creeps around the corner. Good security is never enough.
And possibly a way to move cash within or back into the bank? Could be a limit because of security but I’ll be glad if that could happen. It’ll help with the number of different wallets that are already in the market.
Parting thoughts
If there’s one good change coming out from last year, it would be this. Digital wallets have finally found and dug their way up into the surface. It’s getting into the hands of many.
The lessons of old still remain, knowing to save for a rainy day. Be it physical cash or… digital ones — you’ll never know when another big change is going to happen.
Stay safe. And let there be hope for 2021.
