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Comment by pluma | Hacker News Reader

I think a major differentiator is that in the EU credit cards are a lot less common and even debit cards aren't used for most transactions (e.g. even at the supermarket most people seem to pay cash). Additionally, there are € 1 and € 2 coins, notes only start at € 5 and up. So you not only carry around a lot of cash, but you also generally need to be able to carry around a lot of coinage, too.

This has been the only thing stopping me from getting a smaller wallet, personally. I have one of those (which are okay if you carry them in your front pocket and don't wear formal attire) and I'd replace them with something simpler at the drop of a hat if it wouldn't mean ending up with loose change in your pocket.

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"I think a major differentiator is that in the EU credit cards are a lot less common and even debit cards aren't used for most transactions (e.g. even at the supermarket most people seem to pay cash)."

Absolutely not true for every European county.

>> I think a major differentiator is that in the EU credit cards are a lot less common and even debit cards aren't used for most transactions (e.g. even at the supermarket most people seem to pay cash).

Definitely wrong. In Denmark I never carry any cash. In US I have to carry at least some cash. Why are there no bigger bills than $100?

I'm sorry, but I'm struggling to come up with a reason why you would want a note above $100?

In London, 30% of transactions under £20 aren't just cashless - they're contactless. I seldom use cash and that's true for most people I know.

Do you happen to have a source?

"Barclaycard said contactless cards had been most popular in London, where 30% of all transactions below £20 were contactless." -- http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-31164806

The article is really about from Sept 2015, the limit for contactless payment goes up to £30.

>I think a major differentiator is that in the EU credit cards are a lot less common and even debit cards aren't used for most transactions

This is just plain wrong for many European countries.

Opposite experience here: saw lots of cash usage (not necessarily coins but lots of paper) in North-America while here in the Netherlands we're all 'bout that debit card.

It's true that credit cards aren't popular in Europe or where I'm speaking from, the Netherlands, as there are lots of bank-integrated payment processors like iDeal in the netherlands (cheaper than creditcards for merchants, free to users, instant and without chargeback risk) for online transactions, and things like SEPA (also generally free and fast) or Paypal exist for international transfers. I only use my CC when making a rare purchase online where I absolutely have to, or sometimes to book a flight or hotel abroad.

For everything in store though, debit cards are extremely well used. And as the debit card is connected to a bank account that offers credit, too, they function like creditcards. (and I can indeed use my debit card e.g. in the North America, China or Africa). So while 'creditcard' numbers in reports aren't as high as the US, cards that offer credit are ubiquitous.

In fact I don't think I've paid with cash in the past 10 years here in Europe, except in clubs where paying with a card is weird (unless you booked a table which is a bit silly for anything other than a holiday imo) and that's not a joke. I'm not sure what it's like in say Portugal, but I really don't need to keep any coin around unless I go to the local market, a club or my shady barber. Where are you based in Europe?

Beyond that though my wallet is loaded with cards. Public transport, insurance, student id, gym (up until they moved to a fingerprint scanner), discount card at supermarket etc.

Given all this I don't think I'll be carrying a wallet in the 2020s, any credentials that are on the chip in my plastic cards can go on the chip on my phone. Kind of scary in a way, cash is a bit like in-person communication, it's not monitored the way that digital communication is monitored by government, businesses and malicious parties. The death of cash at some point means our entire economic life is recorded by banks which worries me every now and then, although it'll probably be decades before it's phased out completely and the majority of economic activity has been digital for a long time, but still.

edit -- seems you're right! Two years ago the majority of transactions (53%) was still cash based. Much more popular than I'd have thought. Guess I'm a huge outlier. Debit has grown 15% since then so it might be slightly different today.

Still it's not true that it's necessary to carry a lot of coin, at least not where I live. Even at markets like this: http://hoogeveenheefthet.nl/site1/images/stories/bedrijven/m...

about 40% take cards. At supermarkets it's virtually 100% and there are special checkouts for card transactions where you can't pay with cash (because cash transactions are more expensive, take longer to process, have a higher error rate and make the shop a bigger target to theft). I honestly barely ever use cash.

Interesting. I stand corrected.

I was extrapolating from my personal experience in Germany and as a tourist in other EU countries. It seems that my experience is not representative of that of residents of some of those countries.

I wonder why Germany is so different.

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