Cash reigns supreme

Delegates attending the annual Digital Money Forum in London illustrated very effectively today that despite the increasing prevalence of card and electronic payments - cash is not dead but very much alive and kicking.

In his presentation, Joe DiVanna from Maris Strategies, championed the use of coins and notes - rather than e-payments - and called on delegates to re-assess attitudes and think about the relationship that people have with money and the role of cash in society.

DiVanna argued for the importance of cash today, particularly in regions like Africa where people are often charged substansial fees for basic banking services.

To illustrate his point that cash is still very important to consumers in all regions, DiVanna asked all delegates in the room to count up every coin and note in their pockets, wallets and purses etc.

On my own table I turned out to have the least amount of cash with £4.95. However, not only did the others around the table have considerably more cash than me, many were also carrying notes in more than one currency. Someone had around 70 in sterling and 50 in US dollars, while another had EUR40 in addition to sterling. 

The total sum of cash in the room totalled over £2000 in notes and coins - clear evidence that cash hasn't been killed off just yet.