Future of Cash – Today’s Challenges, Tomorrow’s Opportunities

The last year has accelerated a number of payment trends, with the cash ‘paradox’ to the fore (cash in circulation up, cash transactions down). The Future of Cash conference laid out and explained the growing pressure on cash but also gave good data, examples and food for thought about opportunities for the future.

With international travel still interrupted, a virtual Future of Cash conference was held online ahead of the real thing 9-10 November in Madrid. The conference was structured with four sessions over two days.

The first session set the scene with presentations from the Bank of Spain, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Dutch National Bank (DNB). The impact of the pandemic on cash in Europe was described and the DNB gave the context and plan for their detailed study, in conjunction with McKinsey, investigating future options for cash given its sharp decline in the Netherlands.