Rafał Górski, president of the Institute of Civil Affairs, spoke in an interview with "Obserwator Finansowy"

"Obserwator Finansowy": At the beginning of the year, the "Manifesto of the Cash Coalition" was published. This is an informal network of organizations whose goal is to defend cash as the primary means of payment in economic transactions. Does it really need defending?

Rafał Górski: Absolutely, because there's a full-scale war on cash going on. Ordinary citizens generally either don't see it, or they do, but aren't fully aware of its intensity. Anyone who uses cash on a daily basis experiences the daily challenges associated with the restrictions on this means of payment in a unique way.

For example?

It's common for retailers to struggle to give change from a 100, 200, or even 50 złoty banknote because of a shortage of lower-denomination banknotes. Although they are obligated to do so, when most customers pay by card or phone, cash runs out, and the customer hears: "Is there anything smaller? I can't give it to you. Or maybe by card?" And a vicious cycle ensues. I remember that not so long ago, it was quite common practice to have larger-denomination banknotes changed by the cashier in the store. This wasn't a problem. Now, it's very difficult because, due to the shortage of cash in daily circulation, cashiers have to "save" it to give customers change. Furthermore, there's the issue of ATM withdrawals, which presents several challenges. These include, for example, so-called ATM deserts, which were highlighted by the National Bank of Poland in its "National Cash Transaction Security Strategy." Withdrawing money is becoming increasingly difficult, especially outside large cities, and you often have to drive several or even a dozen kilometers to the nearest ATM. In urban areas, it's still easier, although even here we face various restrictions (e.g., limits) and fees.

My wife took the time to locate ATMs in our neighborhood that dispense cash in smaller denominations than just 100 and 200 złoty. There used to be three, five bus stops from our house. Only two remain because one of them recently added 200 złoty denominations. In practice, this means that if a customer wants to withdraw more than 100 złoty, they will receive 200 złoty notes, which will be a problem when paying in stores. In theory, however, this limitation can be circumvented by making several smaller withdrawals, for example, 100 or 150 złoty each. But this, in turn, incurs a commission fee, which the customer pays with each such transaction. This means that the customer loses out and learns the hard way that cash means costs, hassles, and stress, so "it's better to pay with a card." All of this makes using cash more difficult.

This reminds me a bit of the mid-1990s, when we warned about transport exclusion, and it took 25 years for the topic to enter the public debate. Back then, public transport users were perceived as second-class citizens. I have a feeling it's a similar situation with cash today. Cash exclusion is growing. We're being told that modernity means BLIK or a payment card, and that cash is something shameful. There's a clear cultural pressure moving in this direction, which I believe is the result of lobbying. On top of all this, we have the legislative level, which introduces limits on cash payments, which leads to the marginalization of cash. As a result, cash is becoming a thing of the past, but this isn't a natural trend, but one driven by the cashless lobby. On the other hand, we have research showing that over 80% of Poles don't want cash to be abolished.

Translated from Polish to English. For full interview see below:

(obserwatorfinansowy.pl)