I took my son to the doctor last week. There was a $30 copay. I took out my credit card. "We don't take credit cards." So I took out my debit card. "We don't take debit cards." So the two of us went through our pockets and together came up with $30 in cash, "We don't take cash." Huh?
The only thing they would take is a check! I don't even know where my checkbook is any more.
I told them too bad -- I'll issue one online. And we left.
I guess this is why Visa stock is through the roof -- microcommissions on millions of coffee transactions.
I still pay for coffee with the spare change in my change jar.
It cracks me up when the old geezer at the grocery story pays for groceries by check. I'm like, 'Check, what's that." Never ceases to amaze me.
I have another friend who does not have a debit/ATM card. I asked: "How do you get cash?"
"When I deposit my paycheck I withdrawal cash and use that for two weeks."
How old school!
Re: Monitoring
AskAsa
2/8/2012 10:45:59 AM
I work around 20 somethings all day. They think nothing of taking out a bank or credit card to pay for a coffee. Since so many retailers abandoned the minimum charge policy it's very possible to spend a day working, eating, commuting, taxi runs and drinks all on plastic. You dont even have to touch cash.
I wonder what it will take to retrain young consumers and help them see the folly of plastic.
Re: Monitoring
driven
2/8/2012 10:37:15 AM
Ha ha. But seriously, with tracking and bank fees, I'm thinking more about cash these days too.
Re: Monitoring
AskAsa
2/8/2012 10:28:57 AM
Re: Monitoring
Tenacious
2/8/2012 10:27:27 AM
I'm going to rediscover cash
Monitoring
AskAsa
2/7/2012 8:21:50 PM
If it moves ahead the monitoring aspect of the service will prove to be a hit with younger consumers. Many do not resent having their coffee consumption tracked and even appreciate the reminders.
It's understandable based on the size and volume of Facebook transactions that the banks are taking notice. Wonder how it will play out?
It's unclear how this relates to Movenbank, but the Facebook connection is interesting. Apparently some big banks are starting to worry because Facebook's payments revenues have been growing gangbusters and its digital currency could soon threaten banks as it moves into traditional channels.
According to a story on American Banker, Facebook generated about $557 million, or roughly 15% of its revenues, from "payments and other fees" last year, according to its S-1. That figure is a five-fold increase from its $106 million in payments revenues in 2010, which was itself up from the $13 million the year before. The payments revenues come from selling Facebook Credits, a digital currency, for 10 cents each. Users can exchange the credits for digital items to display on their Facebook pages or to upgrade games played on the social networking site.
If consumers adopt Facebook Credits for more of their spending, it would distintermediate banks, distancing them from valuable spending data that could be used to cross-sell products and deepen customer relationships. Facebook could also become a prominent brand on checkout pages and eventually at the point of sale, further displacing credit and debit cards.
With its exponential growth in payments, Facebook is already confronting regulatory complications. "Payments on the Facebook Platform could be considered a financial product ... we could be deemed a financial institution," it said in its securities filing.
This doesn't necessarily mean Facebook plans to become a bank. But it is applying for state money transmitter licenses, which would put it in the same league as PayPal Inc. Facebook might likewise displace banks and payment networks in the process.
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