Cashless Thai society not on the cards anytime soon, says study

[webfact]

A study conducted by the Bank of Thailand has shown that at least 50% of the Thai public will continue to use cash as their preferred payment method even after widespread takeup of banking apps such as Krungthai Bank’s Pao Tang app during the pandemic to receive government payments, support and subsidies. The study revealed that cash is seen as, by far, a better choice for a majority of customers as opposed to banking apps and even credit cards because it is easier to use, more accepted and more economical while offering better privacy.

 

by Carla Boonkong & Pranee O' Connor

 

It had been thought that with high smartphone penetration among the population and the widespread use of digital apps for payments during the pandemic, a transition to a cashless society had begun. The answer, according to a survey of 6,020 people, is unequivocal. No, it has not. 65% of users who took up Krung Thai Bank’s Pao Tang app to avail of government financial supports have opted to no longer use it while cash is seen to have an edge under every criterion. It is seen as more convenient, more widely accepted, cheaper and more private.

 

A groundbreaking survey carried out by the Bank of Thailand into the payment and purchasing habits of the Thai public shows a marked reluctance to switch over from cash to a digital payment system. The study showed that at least 50% of people will continue to use only cash for day to day payments while nearly all respondents said they felt cash was a necessity for daily life. The survey also highlighted the fact that cash payments were cheaper with a 5 to 10% saving.

 

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The result of the ongoing survey and study has raised eyebrows among the boffins at the Bank of Thailand which shows that nearly all Thai people continue to use cash for daily purchases and essentials.

 

Full story: https://www.thaiexaminer.com/thai-news-foreigners/2022/05/01/cash-still-king-people-reject-app-payments/

 

-- © Copyright Thai Examiner 2022-05-02

 

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[spidermike007]

Good, good. Nothing worse than standing in line for coffee while 7 people in front of me are struggling to use their cards to pay for a 70 baht item. Why not carry some cash for small items? I prefer using cash for nearly everything, whenever possible. Cash is king. 

Edited May 2, 2022 by spidermike007

[JoePai]

In God we trust, all others pay cash

[OneMoreFarang]

I think cash helps to keep a better overview about how much we spent. Like: Wow, my wallet is already empty again, I was just yesterday at the ATM.

With payment methods like credit cards the bill comes sometime later. Did I really spend that much this month?

 

I use cash and cards and transfers etc. For large amounts transfers make obviously sense, for small amounts not so much.

[ESLTeacher1989]

Cashless society sets such a dangerous precedent, as we've learn from the canadian protests.........government can just cancel your cards/bank account..........and you're completely stuck for money! Cashless society should NEVER EVER happen. 

[BritManToo]

22 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

Good, good. Nothing worse than standing in line for coffee while 7 people in front of me are struggling to use their cards to pay for a 70 baht item. Why not carry some cash for small items? I prefer using cash for nearly everything, whenever possible. Cash is king. 

Did you forget payment by phone app?

Much quicker than the old lady in front paying cash in ones and twos.

Edited May 2, 2022 by BritManToo

[animalmagic]

Taking the Philippines as an example, figures suggest that approximately 70% of the adult population are unbanked and rely entirely on a cash or barter process.  The digital processing of funds will make these people a priority and there are already developments in the field of virtual banking looking to include this large population group.

Inclusion is always good but there should be serious concerns in respect of the financial knowledge and computer skills needed by this large segment of people to protect themselves against the various digital frauds, scams and tricks happening every day.  Currently, financially experienced and computer literate people in western countries are regularly falling prey to the scammers and losing significant amounts of money as evidenced by published statistics. 

When considering this unbanked population of people in the Philippines they are far more likely to fall victim to online scams and any amount they lose is significant and quite possibly devastating as they do not have the reserves to deal with even a small loss when they currently live a day-to-day cash existence.

Digital payment is pushed by the financial sector due to the potential savings in staff and real estate, they have yet to show themselves as effective in the protection of customers using digital payments.

With cash you can only lose what is in your wallet, not everything you have.

[hotchilli]

Only the large stores and outlets have the facility for cashless payment... ie a "cashiers till"

most high street shops, vendors street, markets etc etc are cash sale only.

 

 

[BritManToo]

Just now, hotchilli said:

Only the large stores and outlets have the facility for cashless payment... ie a "cashiers till"

most high street shops, vendors street, markets etc etc are cash sale only.

Not true, in my local market the stalls all accept phone app payments.

[Hayduke]

36 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Did you forget payment by phone app?

 

One problem with phone apps……is that they will never replace thick brown envelopes.

 

 

Edited May 2, 2022 by Hayduke

[hotchilli]

9 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Not true, in my local market the stalls all accept phone app payments.

Okay so not true in your neck of the woods

But very true in mine.

[CartagenaWarlock]

Europe, Japan, Singapore, China, Canada are more cashless compared to the USA. Thais have a love for cash. My GF argued with me for 30 minutes why she like cash and then we went to 7/11 and she used her phone to pay for her protein drink. 

[klauskunkel]

Quote

Cashless Thai society not on the cards anytime soon, says study

because bribes are only accepted in cash.

[Andycoops]

Cash is king and long may it continue.

Most places I visit don't even have an electronic till receipt machine let alone a system for cashless payments.

[Pla Simon]

On the contrary - most of the Thais I know, have been cashless for a while now..

[worgeordie]

If /when Thailand changed to a cashless society ,this old fart

would starve to death* , I don't have/want a smartphone ,read

a while ago about how the system went down in UK , and people

who did not have cash , were  having big problems as the could 

not get access to cash . 

* my wife who's best friend is a smartphone ,would have to buy

everything for me......???? I would have to be extra nice to her ,just 

to make sure I got fed.

regards Worgeordie

[Caldera]

I think they've come a long way already. When I recently traveled upcountry over Songkran, a surprising number of "mom and pop" restaurants and cafes even in small towns had QR codes on display, to allow payment via PromptPay.

 

In Bangkok, nowadays I could pay pretty much anything cashless, even some 10 baht hotdogs from a street vendor. Personally, I still pay those tiny amounts in cash, but use cashless for most larger transactions. 

[Denim]

When all the people can effortlessly use an atm machine without a lot of head scratching maybe then going cashless might work.

 

What I dont like about cashless is that machines and devices sometime break down or develop a glitch , causing a big problem.

 

We've had cash for centuries.

If something works well why try to fix whats not broken.

[BangkokReady]

1 hour ago, OneMoreFarang said:

With payment methods like credit cards the bill comes sometime later. Did I really spend that much this month?

That's the whole point.  To make it easier for you to spend money.  Hence "contactless payment", just one tiny tap and you're done, you don't even know you spent any money.  Compare that with getting out your wallet, lifting out the note, seeing how many you have left, handing the note to the cashier.  Any other reason is a smokescreen.

[BangkokReady]

2 minutes ago, Denim said:

If something works well why try to fix whats not broken.

It's to make people not notice their spending so much to get them to spend more.

[Denim]

4 minutes ago, BangkokReady said:

It's to make people not notice their spending so much to get them to spend more.

Ah yes. I completely forgot about that. So true.

[Misterwhisper]

My maid and her entire extended family have have been staunch proponents of a cashless society for years and years. They never have any cash.

 

Also, go and see how your favorite Nana Plaza bargirl (you know... the one of whom you stalwartly claim she is "different from the others") reacts when you offer paying her through the Poon Tang app. Honestly, some transactions are better settled in cash.

[Mac Mickmanus]

2 minutes ago, Misterwhisper said:

My maid and her entire extended family have have been staunch proponents of a cashless society for years and years. They never have any cash.

 

Also, go and see how your favorite Nana Plaza bargirl (you know... the one of whom you stalwartly claim she is "different from the others") reacts when you offer paying her through the Poon Tang app. Honestly, some transactions are better settled in cash.

So it s better to pay prostitutes' in cash, so that your wife doesnt find out ?

[robblok]

1 hour ago, hotchilli said:

Okay so not true in your neck of the woods

But very true in mine.

Also my neck of the woods.. all you need to do is set it up and ask for it.

 

So maybe you never looked for it or dont recognise it.

[Mac Mickmanus]

1 hour ago, hotchilli said:

Only the large stores and outlets have the facility for cashless payment... ie a "cashiers till"

most high street shops, vendors street, markets etc etc are cash sale only.

 

 

What did you base you findings on ?

Did you go to most high street shops in Thailand to see whether they only accept cash ?

[scorecard]

2 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Good, good. Nothing worse than standing in line for coffee while 7 people in front of me are struggling to use their cards to pay for a 70 baht item. Why not carry some cash for small items? I prefer using cash for nearly everything, whenever possible. Cash is king. 

Can be different with cards. In Australia cash has nearly gone, everybody (including pensioners, old folks etc.,) pays using their debit card.

 

Why? Because all banks/merchants use the 'tap' the card against the reader machine technology (just a quick fleeting tap), either customer taps the machine (preferred by most debit card holders and merchants), or give the debit card to the merchants and they tap the machine and hand the card back, all within 1 second. The 'approved' message comes up instantly. All done.

 

Obviously there are limits on total amount of single/multiple transactions and customer can adjust this on their internet banking screen. 

 

Many/all banks in Australia offer debit cards. In most cases (maybe all cases) the customer can in a second add/remove funds from the debit card using their internet banking screen which is very easy to set up and use. 

 

The basic usage of this technology doesn't ask for PIN numbers and a very large % of customers use it in this form. It can be set up to require a PIN number. 

 

Sure there's outcry about banking scams but the reality is that banks respond (because they are being monitored closley by the national reserve bank). There's also the same level of chance of being robbed/tricked in regard to cash.

 

I was living for a while in an independane living war veterans village Nth of Sydney. Most of the residents can walk or can get around with a walker with wheels etc., take the village bus to a nearby shopping complex etc., bus driver helps with any heavy bags etc.  

 

Many times there was a trained village employee quietly floating around the village restaurant at lunch time discretely asking people if they were having any difficulty to use their debit/credit cards. If yes, not often, a quick/quiet lesson how to use cards.

 

Often enough village residents (a very large % are older/very old folks) would talk about this subject amongst the general chitchat. Several times I heard the comment that they were happy they didn't need to go to an ATM machine any more, they had concerns about being robbed at the ATM machine or being followed. 

 

There's also the point (valid for card holders and for merchants) cashless / use debit card provides instant accounting records. 

 

One young couple run a nice coffee/sandwich/pies etc., shop (great egg and bacon rolls with BBQ sauce) just outside the war veterans village, within a small shopping complex. Just a few steps away is a medium size well priced supermarket.

 

The young coffee shop couple (such nice people, parents originally from Vietnam, perfect English) love to chat to the old folks, offer to help with getting heavy shopping onto the village bus etc., I heard them mention that using debit cards (quick tap against the machine) means that they have the money in their bank instantly and don't have to go to the bank to make cash deposits. They do get a small number of  customers paying by cash, not a big amount overall,  but mentioned they keep the small amount of cash ready for any quick purchases they need to make at the supermarket next door. 

 

Re cash, many banks have removed quite a large numbers of their machines across Australia because not enough transactions to warrant the expense of operating/servicing the machine.  And some have increased the charges to withdraw cash to enourage customers to not use cash. 

 

 

Edited May 2, 2022 by scorecard

[Misterwhisper]

20 minutes ago, Mac Mickmanus said:

So it s better to pay prostitutes' in cash, so that your wife doesnt find out ?

Nope. So the revenue department doesn't find out that I am blowing all that money that I claimed I didn't earn on hookers. 

[Mac Mickmanus]

2 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Good, good. Nothing worse than standing in line for coffee while 7 people in front of me are struggling to use their cards to pay for a 70 baht item. Why not carry some cash for small items? I prefer using cash for nearly everything, whenever possible. Cash is king. 

Its easier and quicker to to use a card .

Here in the U.K you just touch your card against the machine and when it beeps , thats you done and paid for , takes seconds

[Mac Mickmanus]

2 minutes ago, Misterwhisper said:

Nope. So the revenue department doesn't find out that I am blowing all that money that I claimed I didn't earn on hookers. 

What difference does it make as to where you spend you undeclared money ?

If you spend cash on prostitutes or a new suit , who would notice the difference ?

[VocalNeal]

31 minutes ago, Mac Mickmanus said:

So it s better to pay prostitutes' in cash, so that your wife doesnt find out ?

Of course.????