RABAT: Imagine carrying cash but being unable to use it. The problem is not with the money, the product, or even the customer — it is the store, confronting shoppers at the checkout with a sign declaring: “Card or digital payment only.”

According to Al-Eqtisadiah, this scenario is no longer a scene from a movie; it is increasingly common worldwide. Many societies are moving toward cashless systems, replacing paper and coin money, cheques, and promissory notes with digital wallets, bank cards, and smart payment apps.

Building cashless societies

Traditional money, whether coins or notes, is rapidly becoming a relic in some countries — particularly those that developed digital infrastructures and financial systems early to support cashless transactions. Payments are now made electronically through credit and debit cards, digital wallets, and other contactless methods.

According to a report by Zimpler, some societies have reduced cash transactions to just 5 percent of all payments. Almost everything, from taxi rides to a cup of coffee, and even donations at local churches, is paid digitally. In China’s Shandong province, even beggars carry containers with QR codes for digital donations.

Sweden leads the cashless movement, with 99 percent of transactions conducted digitally. The law allows businesses to refuse cash outright, limiting cash payments to just 1 percent of total transactions.

Even street vendors no longer accept coins or banknotes. This success stems from Sweden’s early adoption of digital infrastructure, including the launch and widespread promotion of the Swish app in 2012, which reshaped public perception of traditional money.

A global decline in cash

The shift away from cash is a worldwide trend, according to Visual Capitalist. Countries at the forefront include Finland, China, and South Korea, as well as Denmark, the UK, Australia, and the Netherlands.

In the Arab world, the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia are leading the way, though progress varies depending on each nation’s digital infrastructure.

Digital payments: benefits and risks

The move toward digital payments is no longer a projection of cashless advocates; it is a reality, confirmed by the British printing firm De La Rue.

Research firm Edison Group notes that the company now faces an uncertain future as digital adoption accelerates, after previously producing 36 percent of the world’s currency.

The appeal of digital payments lies in the advantages they offer users. Digital transactions eliminate theft risks, prompting widespread adoption. For example, a late-night robbery in south London led a restaurant owner to stop accepting cash altogether.

Electronic money provides speed and convenience while protecting users from counterfeit notes, loss, damage, and other risks that threaten traditional cash. Governments also benefit, reducing printing costs, limiting visible tax evasion, and making money laundering easier to trace.

The figurative sentence, “Cash has become like a dinosaur, but it will remain,” is often cited by experts and financial consultants who question the notion of the “death of cash,” seeing it as a slogan promoted by major corporations to convince people that digital money is the currency of the present and future.