Megalith
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Credit card giant Visa has declared war on cash by handing out thousands of dollars to up to 50 small food and restaurant vendors if they agree to stop taking paper currency. Additionally, the company will upgrade restaurants' checkout terminals so they can accept contactless payments (e.g., Apple Pay) and invest in some of the stores' marketing costs. Naturally, Visa is interested in a cashless culture, arguing higher convenience, security, and ease of use.
It's all part of the trend of moving towards a "cashless" society. Sweden is leading the pack, with that nation already predicted to become the world's first truly cash-free society; over half the banks there already do not keep any cash on hand. But the U.S. is catching up: Amazon's brick-and-mortar retail stores only accept credit cards and mobile payment methods; Facebook recently added a peer-to-peer payment option with its Messenger service; and Apple's iOS11 will include an upgrade to its ApplePay system that allows users to send money to each other via text message.
It's all part of the trend of moving towards a "cashless" society. Sweden is leading the pack, with that nation already predicted to become the world's first truly cash-free society; over half the banks there already do not keep any cash on hand. But the U.S. is catching up: Amazon's brick-and-mortar retail stores only accept credit cards and mobile payment methods; Facebook recently added a peer-to-peer payment option with its Messenger service; and Apple's iOS11 will include an upgrade to its ApplePay system that allows users to send money to each other via text message.