Cheap money: Reports of the death of cash have been greatly exaggerated May 28, 2015 A landmark proposal has seen the Danish government consider ending the obligation of retailers to accept cash, a global first, with the implication that paper notes and coins could soon lose their grip on their status as legal tender. Figures from the Payments Council released last week, meanwhile, showed that cashless transactions have overtaken the [...]
Six astonishing predictions about the internet in 2019 May 28, 2015 Just eight years ago, there was no iPhone, while a mere decade ago, half of all Britain's internet connections were made via the dulcet tones of dial-up – things change fast. In just a few years' time who knows how the internet will change? Well, there are some quite astonishing predictions that have been made [...]
As non-cash payments overtake hard currency, are we a few years off being a cashless society? May 21, 2015 Dennis Jones, chief executive of Judo Payments, says Yes This development isn’t surprising. One of the key drivers for this is the growth of lower-value transactions being made with cards. TfL alone has seen over 60m contactless transactions in the last six months, which were historically made with cash. And London’s buses are now cash-free [...]
Russell Brand teams up with cryptocurrency firm to fund global revolution April 14, 2015 Self-styled anti-capitalist revolutionary Russell Brand has teamed up with cryptocurrency and crowdfunding platforms to raise funds for his beloved revolution. Brand and his YouTube show the Trews have partnered with Startjoin – a cryptocurrency crowdfunding platform – as well as the cryptocurrency itself Startcoin to raise money for the cause. Russell Brand @RustyRockets, @Trews, @StartJOIN & [...]
The death of cash: Brits pay by card and mobile instead April 13, 2015 Cash makes up just £18.33 of every £100 spent in the UK, Halifax said today, as card and digital payments take over. The rise of digital payments is starkly outlined in new figures from the bank, which show how quickly Britons have adopted cutting-edge technologies. Cheques account for just 1.2 per cent of all current [...]
Vodafone teams up with Visa and Carta Worldwide to offer contactless payments to Android mobile users March 30, 2015 Vodafone is getting into the business of contactless payments by allowing its customers to add bank cards to their digital wallets in the coming months it announced yesterday. The telecoms giant has teamed up with Visa and Carta Worldwide to allow European customers with Android smartphones to pay for services at contactless pay points via [...]
Central banks could create cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin February 25, 2015 Cryptocurrency Bitcoin could revolutionise the way Britons pay for goods and services, in much the same way as the internet shook up access to information, the Bank of England has said. Bitcoin “potentially combined with mobile technology, may reshape the mechanisms for making secure payments”, the Bank said. The Bank could itself create digital currencies, [...]
The UK has the sixth best digital economy in Europe February 24, 2015 The UK is one of Europe's leading digital economies, ranking as the sixth best country in Europe a new report has found. It's ahead of the majority of the rest of Europe when it comes to digital in areas such as connectivity, internet use and the integration of digital technology, according to the European Commission [...]
Contactless payments rise to £380m as Brits favour plastic February 16, 2015 Britain's shoppers spent more than £380m via contactless payments in December, showing their rapid adoption of the latest technologies, according to the UK Cards Association. Overall spending on plastic rose to £49.1bn in the month, with debit cards leading the way. Debit card spending rose 7.2 per cent on the year to £34.5bn, over a [...]
Spending on contactless cards triples in just one year February 7, 2015 Peoples' penchant for contactless cards pushed total spending on them to a record £2.32bn last year according to data from The UK Cards Association. This was three times more than last year's figure. Shoppers can make contactless payments of up to £20 by touching their cards against a reader. It means small purchases can be made [...]