UK’s cash system could collapse within a decade

• Campaigners have called for Chancellor Rishi Sunak to save banknotes and coins, saying without urgent new laws the cash system could collapse within a decade.
• “We must ensure the shift to digital doesn’t leave millions behind or put our economy at risk,” said Natalie Ceeney, of the Access to Cash Review.
• The Treasury said it wanted “to ensure everyone who needs cash can access it.” Cash is important to millions of people, who still use it for paying for vital goods and services, such as utility and council bills.
• According to the Financial Inclusion Commission, nearly two million people in Britain don’t have a bank account, meaning they need notes and coins to pay their way. There were 11 billion cash payments in the UK in 2018, but they are forecast to fall to 3.8 billion in 2028, accounting for fewer than one in 10 (9%) of all payments.

 

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