Cash-in-Transit
The Ligue regularly undertakes projects to improve safety of the critical personnel involved in transport, to highlight the sustainability efforts of the cash sector, to conduct research to reveal the true cost of digital payments vs. cash; and to promote the importance of protecting cash from efforts to discriminate against those who choose—or must—rely on it.
Cash has an enduring presence around the globe for many reasons. Convenient, anonymous, trusted, tangible, ubiquitous—it’s easy to see why the habit of paying with cash persists.
And even as cash has seen a small decline in its share of total retail payments, cash continues to be the most frequently used consumer payment instrument; is widely used in a variety of circumstances; and dominates small-value transactions. Furthermore, the sheer volume of currency in circulation continues to grow, highlighting cash’s global significance and the critical role security companies have in protecting it.
Like dams and electrical grids, cash is critical infrastructure that requires support and protection — Stefan Huber, International Security Ligue
Leading companies in cash logistics, represented by the International Security Ligue, annually take part in data sharing to identify the frequency adverse safety events and to spur advances in health and safety strategy and to identify opportunities to engineer-out safety risks.
Tremendous progress is being made to reduce the carbon footprint of cash and to secure its sustainable future, as noted in the report, Cash: Roadmap to Sustainability, which coincided with the COP 26 conference. Research reveals an industry that has undertaken dramatic efforts to improve environmental performance and is making substantial investments to further reduce its impact.
Cash is more economical for store merchants than debit cards, according to a global study that examined 50 international public and independent studies and different cost components, such as cash-in-transit charges and merchant discount fees for retailers. Cash was discovered to be cheaper for merchants in early all 52 countries examined. The 2019 study, “An international approach to the cost of payment instruments: the case of cash,” was
"Stores that decline cash may end up disadvantaging people who rely on its use. These people are more likely to be young, elderly, poor, disabled, or financially excluded," — Reserve Bank of New Zealand
Cashless payment schemes threaten to further marginalize low-income people. Advocates for the elderly and disadvantaged warn that if nations ignore a steady march toward the exclusive use of payment apps and debit cards, the world’s poor will fall further behind. They note that significant barriers exist for individuals trying to climb out of poverty to obtain or maintain a bank account
Specific risks from societies’ going cashless include: struggles in areas with poor broadband or mobile connectivity; hardship among people who find it hard to use digital services, such as individuals with physical or mental health challenges and the elderly; loss of a critical lifeline for people who turn to cash to escape a difficult situation or abusive relationship; higher prices for those unable to benefit from online services or direct debits; and potentially rising debt levels, as budgeting is easier with cash.
Independent researchers conducted a study on the comparative costs of cash and debit cards and learned cash is a cheaper form of payment in almost every country and every size transaction.
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Fraud is a significant and mounting problem for global economies made worse by non-cash methods of payment, according to “Fraud in cash and electronic payments: taxonomy, estimation and projections.”
Read MoreHumorous — but with a serious message serious: Governments around the world need to take steps to protect and promote cash.
1. Pursuing convenience for some can leave behind others.
2. The resilience of cash makes it an important firewall against the increase in natural disasters and cyberattacks.
3. Electronic payment fraud is simple compared to fraud with cash.
